That's Why I'm Here
by LizD
Summary: This is yet another version of the missing scenes between HOLE IN THE HEART and THE CHANGE IN THE GAME. More meat than sweet – fair warning.
1. Chapter 1

**That's Why I'm Here**

By LizD

Written June 2011

This is yet another version of the missing scenes between HOLE IN THE HEART and THE CHANGE IN THE GAME. More meat than sweet – fair warning.

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

"You're staying at my apartment tonight," Booth said.

He was prepared for an argument. He was prepared for any number of logical, rational, practical reasons why it wouldn't be prudent for her to stay with him. None of that mattered. He was not about to let her be alone that night. It wasn't about her safety – at least not her physical safety. It was about her emotional safety. He knew Brennan. He knew her better than she knew herself. He had seen her changing. Hell, he was responsible for her changing. Seven years ago he walked into her life. She needed no one and didn't need him above a one night stand. It probably would have lasted a little longer than one night, but it damn sure wouldn't have lasted seven years. He asked for her professional help and she demanded all or nothing - professionally. She allowed him to teach her; to tutor her about his world from _broiling_ a suspect to putting away psychotic serial killers bent on destruction. He taught her about murder; the victims, the murderers, the motives. She had killed for him - twice. Slowly, methodically, effectively he had broken down her walls brick by brick and exposed her to a world she had protected herself from for most of her life. An argument could be made that she wanted those walls to come down, but in the end it didn't matter who was more responsible. At this point she was defenseless and needed him. He damn sure wasn't going to allow her to crumble now. She would not admit it, at least not in the light of day, but she was going to have a reaction to Vincent's death. Booth couldn't … he wouldn't let her be alone to work her way through that.

Booth had seen death. He has caused death and he was helpless at time to prevent death. He had lost many friends in war but he was not so jaded as to feel nothing. He did feel responsible for Vincent's death in spite of his protestations, but it was not going to overwhelm him. Ultimately he wasn't the one who pulled the trigger or gave the order. There was a reason Booth was spared; it was hard to live with, but there was a reason. If Broadsky had killed Booth, who would be around to take Broadsky down? It rested on Booth's shoulders alone. He was the only one who could take care of Broadsky – but that was for tomorrow. For that night, he was the only one who could help Brennan over this next hurdle. He had left her alone way too long. She was going to need him, and he would be there. For the first time in too long, he was going to be there to catch her when she fell.

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

"You're staying at my apartment tonight," Booth stated.

Brennan's first reaction was to say no. He was just trying to be nice. He had enough to focus on he didn't need to protect her. She shook her head and was about to protest but the look in his eye was earnest and immovable. It would be easier for him if he knew she was safe.

"OK," she said softly and nodded. She didn't want to argue with him. She didn't want to add to his burden any more than she already had. She looked away and walked away.

She was chiding herself for the _blood on your hands_ comment. She needed to stop being so literal when it didn't matter. Who cares if he still had blood on his hands? She still had blood on hers. At least it felt that way even after repeated washings and she was wearing gloves. She had heard the idiom _blood on your hands_ of course and actually knew the figurative meaning – to have caused someone's death. It didn't apply to Booth in this instance but she saw his face after she said it. She saw him start and wince and blanch. She saw him look away. He said that he didn't feel responsible, that he wasn't the one who pulled the trigger. Was that really true or was that just something he needed to believe? Or was it something he told them so they wouldn't try to shore him up?

Brennan heard Angela explain that she was being literal and saw Booth inspect his hands. He used to know her. He used to know that everything she said was literal. He used to appreciate that about her. They had grown so far apart. How would they ever get back on the same track if only to be partners? It was comments like those that widened the already widening gap between them. How could she have done that? He was being so strong, so patient, so kind to all of them. How could she have added to his burden like that? And then to have him want to protect her – she didn't deserve his kindness. She didn't deserve him. It was Booth who needed protection - protection from her.

She waited in his office for two hours and forty-five minutes as he attended to the FBI protocol when someone is killed in the course of an investigation. She stood looking out the window at the city below thinking that one of those people down there walking around was Broadsky, and none of them was Vincent Nigel Murray. She felt her heart start to race, there was a lump in her throat and her stomach tightened into a knot. Why Vincent? He had hurt no one. He had dedicated his life to science. He was earnestly working for good. He was an innocent. He didn't deserve to die. He shouldn't have died. It was all so tragic.

But if Booth had picked up the phone it would have been Booth who was killed. The bullet was meant for Booth. How would she have survived if Booth had been killed? The tears welled in her eyes. It wasn't Booth, she reminded herself. It was Vincent. It was Vincent and he didn't deserve to die. Broadsky was the cause. Broadsky was to blame and he was still out there. He was the one who could still cause more unnecessary deaths. He was the one that needed to be caught. He was a _son of a bitch_ – not literally of course, but the figurative meaning applied.

Her thoughts turned again to Booth, about the days ahead. She would have to help him, do what she could to help him in the only way she knew how. She needed to give him information, help him to find Broadsky and if possible, bring him in alive. Booth hated killing people, even people who deserved it – and yes there were people who deserved it. She needed to help Booth; help him stay focused, help him complete his mission. She wished it were over. She wished it were all over and they could go back to their lives, but nothing would ever be the same. Her world was changing. Vincent was dead.

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

"Bones, what the hell are you doing?" Booth barked, strode into the office and pulled her away from the window. He snapped the blinds closed. "Do you understand?" He softened his tone. "Broadsky tried to kill me today. When he finds out he missed, he will try again. I don't want you taking a bullet for me. I don't want anyone else to take a bullet for me."

"He didn't need a window to kill Mr. Nigel Murray."

"I know. I know. But, please … No widows, OK? … please." He put his hands through his hair and blew heavy breath out. He was wound tighter than a drum. He needed something ordinary to do. "Are you hungry?"

"No," she said quietly avoiding eye contact. "But you should eat."

"I'm not hungry," he dismissed. "Let's just go home, OK?"

She nodded trying not to meet his eyes any more than was necessary. She wanted to suggest that her apartment might be safer than his if indeed Broadsky were setting up to take another shot. It was logical, it was rational. She had two bedrooms, food in the refrigerator and a bottle of scotch that she kept for him. There was no reason for Broadsky to suspect that Booth would be there. He hadn't been there much in the past year or more. It made sense, but she didn't want to challenge him. She would do what she was told just to appease him.

Booth grabbed his coat and led her out of the office. He should have suggested her apartment rather than his. It was larger – two bedrooms anyway – and it was more likely that if Broadsky were going to go after him that night it would be at his apartment rather than hers. But it was too late to change the plans. Besides, Booth needed to be on his own ground. Brennan's place wasn't as familiar to him as it once was. So much had changed. So much time had been wasted. Too many lives wasted. And now Booth had Vincent Nigel Murray to add to his balance sheet.

The car ride was quiet. They were each in their own thoughts but there was a modicum of comfort that they were together.

His apartment was dark and cold and there was a musty smell. He hadn't been home much in the past few weeks either. There was no food in his refrigerator and no beer. Neither one wanted a drink so it really didn't matter. He offered to take the couch; she protested that it was more important that he get his sleep. She was so practical. Of course there was little chance either of them was going to sleep that night. He could feel how stiff and uncomfortable she was - more so than usual. He probably was off his game too. He studied her for a moment trying to decide if he should be the one to open the topic of Vincent's death but he could tell that she was not in a talking mood. To be honest, he needed some time to himself as well. So he said good night, went to his room and closed the door. He smirked at the absurdity: Brennan in his apartment, in his sweats and she was sleeping on the couch? There was a time in his youth when that never would have happened regardless of the events of the previous twenty-four hours or the woman in question.

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

Brennan sat up for a long time in the darkened living room. She had heard him in the bathroom and saw the light go out from under his door. She heard him get into bed and check his weapon. And then all was still. He didn't toss or turn and he didn't stir. It was good that he could get some sleep. It was important for him to be rested. His sniper training would have taught him how to sleep or at least shut down and recharge in stressful situations. It wouldn't due for him to make a mistake because he was overtired. Brennan was wide awake. She thought about reading, she thought about writing, she thought about getting up and going home - anything to stop her mind from spinning – but she stayed as still as she could on the couch as not to disturb him. Reading was out, the light would bother him. Writing was out for the same reason. She couldn't go home for obvious reasons. Time passed slowly.

_Please don't make me leave._

Her mind started spinning faster about the incidents of that day. Every detail was fresh in her mind: the sound of the breaking glass, the look on Mr. Nigel Murray's face, the pain in his voice as he begged her to let him stay.

_Don't make me go. … I don't want to go … It's been lovely…_

She wouldn't have made him go. She liked him. She respected his zeal, and she even liked his little bits of trivia as random as most of them were. Since coming back from Maluku she found she enjoyed her interns quite a bit and Mr. Nigel Murray really was her favorite.

_It's been lovely … lovely here with you._

Why would he plead with her to let him stay? Did he think it was her fault? Did he think that she wanted him to go? What kind of person did that make her?

_Please don't make me leave._

She wasn't a cold fish; she wasn't a robot. She had feelings and she cared – she cared about all of them. Why would he ask her not to make him leave?

_It doesn't … It … It doesn't hurt. … Please … Please don't … Please don't make me leave. … I love … I love being here. … Don't … Just don't make me leave. … Please … Please don't … Just don't make me go. … I don't want to go … It's been lovely … lovely here with you._

Brennan got up to pace. She tried to do it quietly, but she felt trapped in Booth's apartment. She was becoming more anxious, panicked even. She saw Mr. Nigel Murray's face every time she closed her eyes.

_I love … I love being here._

She was still seeing him when they were wide open in the dark. She didn't understand.

_It doesn't hurt. … Please … Please don't … Please don't make me leave._

She heard his voice. She felt his plea to her. She didn't understand.

_Please don't … Just don't make me go._

Did he really think she was responsible? Were those his last thoughts before he died, that Brennan was responsible? Why would he think she would want him to leave? Was she that horrible?

She knocked into an end table and upset the lamp catching it before it hit the floor. She turned quickly to see if Booth's lights came on; they didn't. As quietly as she could she righted the table and picked up the lamp. She tried to sit down on the couch. She tried to stay still. She tried to stop herself from thinking. It wasn't working. She needed to understand. She needed to talk to Booth. He was the person she talked to about stuff like this. She got up and moved silently to his door and put her ear against it trying to determine if he was awake.

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

Booth lay in the dark with only the street lights streaming through the slits in the blinds. He didn't move. He slowed his breathing. He focused on each muscle group - tensed and relaxed – or at least un-tensed. Tomorrow was tomorrow and would take care of itself as far as Broadsky was concerned. Vincent Nigel Murray filled his mind a lot – just one more kid that died in his hands. How many more would he see die? How much death could one man be expected to take?

He focused on his breathing again. In … Out … In … Out … slow … shallow … barely there.

He forced his mind to Brennan. She was not as accustomed to death as he was that much was evident by her except to Maluku. But this time it was someone she knew. Someone she liked. Someone she was responsible for. This was going to hit her hard. He knew Brennan wasn't sleeping. He assumed it from what he knew from her, but he also had a sense that she was awake – his sniper sense. He thought about getting up and going to her. He thought about bringing her to his bed. He thought about their past. You don't push Brennan. He had scolded Sweets about that how many times? And the first two months in Afghanistan he scolded himself too. No, he would have to let her come to him no matter how long it took. This time he would be there waiting.

The state of their relationship - or lack thereof - was not entirely her fault. He had made mistakes too but she could be very frustrating. Frustrating like no other woman he had ever known. His romantic belief that she was 'the one,' that 'he knew' from the beginning, that they were 'fated' had been shaken, rattled and rolled beyond hope. Not for want of love or commitment on his part in spite of Hannah; but he had finally accepted that she was as immovable on certain subjects as ... well, as the pyramids - or so he thought. For all intents and purposes they were at an impasse and had been for over a year before the night she refused him. How many times he wished he had a chance to relive that night or any of a thousand plus nights that lead up to that night. He had pushed her too hard, too fast and didn't give her time to adapt. He pushed her; she said no and ran away. He ran too - ran right into the arms of someone he decided to love. He tried to console himself with the idea that Brennan probably refused him through some misguided notion of protecting him; she said as much. She didn't lie, fabricate or embellish. At the time it didn't matter why. She said no and it was final. He walked away romantically and didn't look back; partners would be enough if that was all she had to offer. Up until the scheme for Maluku was broached, he truly believed that he could be just her partner but he still harbored the smallest hope that she might change her mind. He was convinced her no meant no when day after day, week after week, month after month went by and she didn't contact him. She said no and it was final - or so he thought. Sometime time during the seven months they were parted he got hurt, he got bitter, he got angry and he got Hannah.

His eyes snapped opened in the dark. He thought he heard something. Nothing. No sound. No movement. It was quiet but not too quiet. He got up and listened at the door to see if Brennan were awake. He expected that she would cry at some point and he would be there to give her a shoulder and dry her tears. Nothing, but he still didn't think she was sleeping. He went back to bed and resumed his position his head again full of Brennan.

Brennan had always been a great partner. There was no one else he wanted in his corner, no one would have his back the way she did. But the last nine months she had proven that she was a great friend - more than a friend - in spite of the way he was treating her. She had proven how much she loved him - romantically probably if he would have allowed it – but she loved him as a person. She was selfless and put his happiness above her own. She would have watched him marry Hannah, raise kids with Hannah, grow old with Hannah – Hannah couldn't see that but Brennan did. She would have supported him every step of the way of that ill conceived foray into domestic bliss. Could he have said as much? Probably not. She was loyal, forgiving, understanding, patient, tolerant, and kind all without pushing her own agenda. He was confused at first when she revealed that she had discovered that she made a mistake. Why would she say such a thing to him when he was involved with Hannah? Why would she force him to hurt her like that? He easily for gave her in time. She did not seek him out, he sought her. She did not come to him; he was just there when the light dawned. She had done nothing and had not treated him any differently after he rejected her than she had before. She was steady and constant, but he did see hurt in her eyes on occasion. Her only agenda ever was to keep him in her life in any way she could; there were times when that was annoying, painful and awkward. He felt it if she didn't. If the tables were reversed, if she had been the one to come home with a lover would he have done as much? He wanted to believe that he would, but he knew that wasn't true.

When Brennan came back she was changed too. If he had only waited, what would have happened for them? If only ... too many ifs. It didn't matter. Shit happened and life went on. They were both still standing, they were a version of partners and they had an expectation for someday. That was one hundred and eighty degrees from where they were sixteen months prior. A hell of a place to be. She was waiting for him and he was waiting for the right time. He wasn't being mean or rude or proving a point - he just wanted to feel about her they way he felt about her so many months ago. He knew in his head he loved her; he knew in his mind that he had never stopped. He knew in his head that she would be with him until the day he died and that day would be years off. He just wanted to feel it, feel it in his heart, feel it in his bones. For that he needed to let go of his anger. He was using his anger to go after Broadsky, he needed it. When this was over, when Broadsky was captured or killed, then he would let it go. Then he would allow himself to feel something other than anger.

Since her heart felt reveal to him last December he had seen her retreat behind the safety of her science again. He was sorry for that. Since the night Hannah left and he gave Brennan no other option than to be his partner only, he saw her weak and tentative around him. He was sorry for that too. The night they got stuck in the elevator, the night they shared a wish for someday, the night they burned their wishes and let them free to the universe was a new day for them. It was that night when he knew -

The door opened. Booth shot up in bed, grabbed his gun and trained it on the person in the door way. He hadn't realized that he wasn't sleeping, that every muscle in his body was on hyper alert. He would have shot but he saw her face and stopped himself.

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

"I'm sorry," she stumbled with her hands up in his door way.

"No, I'm sorry." He sat up and threw his legs over the side of the bed trying to clear his head. "I'm sorry. Did you hear something?"

"No." She looked back to the living room sorry that she woke him.

"Do you want me to put the gun away?"

"Yes."

Booth put the gun down and asked what was wrong. This was what he had expected. This was why she was in his apartment and on his couch. This was why she was there. Booth let her come in and talk. She needed answers that were not easily given. She needed answers that no one had except people of faith. Brennan didn't like those answers. And then came the tears. He hadn't seen her break down often in their six year partnership - maybe a handful of times. The last time nearly broke his heart because he was the object of her pain and he couldn't comfort her. This time he would. She asked for his shoulder. This time she actually asked for his shoulder and he was ready, willing and able to give it to her.

He wrapped his arms around her, drew her close and pulled down on the bed allowing her to cry into his shoulder.

"That's why I'm here," he said tenderly. "I'm right here. ... I know. ... It's hard."

She cried herself out as if the crying alone was enough. He was struck again by how unlike any other woman she was. Booth had comforted many women in his life. Some would rant; some would scream, some would demand answers that would never come. Some would fight, hit and need to physically vent the pain. Some would even use it as an excuse to have sex just so they could feel something other than the pain they were in. Booth had seen it all. But Dr. Temperance "Bones" Brennan of the Jeffersonian Institution was different. She just cried quietly and allowed him to hold her. She didn't say anything. She didn't try to pull away; she didn't try to get any closer. She was just there in his arms crying. It was such a huge step for her to allow herself to be comforted, to allow him to comfort her. She had said months before that she was improving, that she was losing her imperviousness. She was right. Impervious people don't cry. He was touched. He was honored that she was able to be so vulnerable with him. He loved her – come what may - he loved her. He knew it. He felt it - in his heart, in his bones, in his soul, in every fiber of his being. He felt his love for her and it nearly overwhelmed him.

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

Brennan sobbed into his shoulder and found safety in his arms. She felt the loss of Mr. Vincent Nigel Murray and the injustice of his loss. She felt the fear and relief that it wasn't Booth who was killed. She felt the dread that as long as Broadsky was still out there no one was safe. She felt sad, sadder than she had ever felt. She allowed herself to feel the depth of her sadness and that was as much as she could bear. She cried for Vincent. She cried for Booth. She cried for herself. She cried for them all. She hadn't cried like that since she was fifteen.

Once she had cried herself out and gained her composure, she tried to pull away.

"Thank you," she said with her voice cracking. "I'm sorry. I didn't want to burden you. You have to catch Broadsky tomorrow. You need your sleep. I'll go back out to the couch."

He allowed her to sit up but didn't allow her to get up. He held her hand to keep her next to him. "You OK?" he asked sweetly brushing the last of her tears away with his thumb.

"Yes," she said bravely. "Thank you."

"That's why I'm here. That's why you're here."

She didn't quite understand but she nodded and smiled weakly at him.

He couldn't let her go. "We have lost so much, Bones," he went on searching her eyes.

She nodded still not understanding what he meant.

"We have lost so much time - being independent, being bitter, being impervious, being angry. Such a colossal waste of time. That's all Vincent wanted was more time and we have it. You and I – we have been given more time. If we learn nothing else from his death we should learn that time is precious and shouldn't be wasted. We only have a short time to walk this life - it shouldn't be squandered."

"Booth, I don't -." She had no idea what she was going to say but she didn't need to.

"I love you, Bones," he said calmly almost sadly. He was resigned to the truth of it. He shrugged his shoulder. "There it is - raw, naked honesty. I love you and I don't want to miss another moment with you."

"Booth?" She was still unclear.

"Do you love me?"

On that she was very clear. "Yes."

"That's all that matters."

"You know that's not true," she protested.

"That's all the matters right here, right now, in this room, with you and me just before dawn." He pulled her down to kiss her. He slipped her arm out of the way and rolled her on to her back deepening the kiss. "Too much wasted time," he mumbled into her neck. He pulled back to look into her soft eyes. "I'm not angry anymore," he admitted even though the tiny voice in his head screamed out that he needed that anger to kill Broadsky. "I'm not angry. I love you." He slipped his hand under the sweatshirt so he could feel her soft smooth skin.

She responded to his kiss. She nearly exploded at his caress. She was exhausted from lack of sleep, from too many tears shed, from holding on so tightly to a hope that she didn't dare have. But it was beginning to look like all her hopes were about to be realized. She started to really respond but the image of Vincent lying in a pool of his own blood flashed through her mind. She stopped and protested. "We shouldn't."

"We owe it to Vincent," he said gently. "We owe it to ourselves not to waste any more time."

"Booth?" She wasn't saying no, she was merely trying to ascertain if he was sure. "Booth?"

She was answered with a kiss. No more words were needed. Too much time had been wasted and there was no guarantee what tomorrow would bring. They made love. It wasn't the high stamina athletic romp that they had expected since that discussion the night of the blizzard. It was loving, tender, soft and sweet. It was more than comforting; it was a promise for a new beginning, a better understanding and a future for them together, a future that was yet unclear but it was there. The future was being shaped with every kiss and caress more so than even they understood.

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

**A/N:** There are probably a hundred of these stories out there – or more. I must admit I have only read one. So anyone interested in this one? The plan is to take it from the night of the DISSOLVE TO BLACK to the night of the B Bomb. This will not be one of those hearts and flowers stories. Booth and Brennan were clearly still not fully on the same page when she told him about the conception. I expect to broach some of the Maluku/Afghanistan fall out but not resolve it. They will still have a lot of work to do and with a baby coming, they will need to put aside some of the petty BS. I will leave a lot of it up to the boys and girls in the BIG LEAGUES should they deign to actually write it for our viewing pleasure but have little faith in their use of flashbacks or working through the real dirt. So, if you are interested, drop a comment or add an alert. This might be enough as a one shot, who knows. You tell me.


	2. Chapter 2

**That's Why I'm Here**

By LizD

Written June 2011

So ... we have a quorum. Thank you for your votes of confidence, I hope I do you and B&B justice. Here we go ...

**Chapter Two**

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

An hour later they rested quietly in each other's arms. They had crossed the line. There was no going back. Their relationship had changed; in the space of sixty minutes – more or less - they moved into a whole new arena. Neither was surprised, except for the timing. Were they ready for it? How much clean up had to be done? How much fallout from the past two years would they have to sort through? Could they just skip a dozen steps because they were in pain and needed each other? Was it really a dozen or would a heartfelt blanket apology and a general acceptance from each suffice? Was that even unnecessary? Hadn't they already forgiven each other a while back? Now wasn't it about forgiving themselves? Was the _**time**_ argument just a good excuse to take a short cut? What would be the purpose of sorting through all their stuff knowing that where they were that morning was the ultimate resolution regardless of anything else? It was fate, wasn't it? Do you apologize for not recognizing fate when it comes up and bites you in the ass, or maybe all of it was fate from the five year dance, to the initial rejection, to the seven month separation, to Hannah, to mistakes realized, to the slow crawl back to reconnecting as partners and friends? Maybe everything that happened over the past seven years was their destiny planned down to the minutest detail as was their ultimate coming together physically and emotionally the night of a friend's death as if it were scripted by powers far greater than themselves. Brennan didn't believe in fate or higher powers; and Booth, he was more of a realist than a romantic – he was convinced that fate existed, but believed that each person has a hand in making his own. So was it fate, circumstance, happenstance or did it matter?

In any or all events … what was next? Next as in the next hour. How did they get out of bed and go back to work?

This was new to Brennan. She had had many sexual liaisons in her life of course and some with colleagues, but none that had such a heavy onus on the future rather than the present. If nothing else, whatever was next, it could not be treated casually. Brennan was more familiar with casual. Booth wasn't prepared for the giant step they had taken either. He knew it was coming sooner or later, but he didn't think it would happen that night. As the light of day made real what they experienced it would need to be addressed. Neither Booth nor Brennan was convinced that a relationship would work for them and stated as such. He had asked for 'a chance' way back when and she had suggested that they 'try to be together.' Were they just trying to soften the impact? Or were they hedging their bets for the time when it would end? It was a safe bet that they would ultimately break up as neither one had been in a long term relationship - a sexual relationship - that lasted more than a year, eighteen months at most. This relationship was different, of course, but was it different enough? Both knew that whatever happened for them it was not a fairy tale. Nor was falling into bed a curative for what ailed them, but it helped to ease the symptoms.

First things first, how to get out of bed and go to work. He had no idea. Brennan helped. She always helped.

"I need to get to the lab," she said as she put her hand flatly on his chest and pushed herself up. "I need to find out everything I can to help you catch Broadsky."

"You always do, Bones." She was stunningly beautiful with her hair mussed and the dark circles under her tear stained eyes. He wasn't ready for the day; he wanted more time. It was too soon to leave the safety of the haven they had just created.

With no embarrassment or awkwardness at her nakedness - not that she had anything to be embarrassed about - she got up from his bed and went to the bathroom. He couldn't help but notice that her hesitation, her uneasiness, her trepidation with him that was there just last night was all but gone. They had just professed their love for each other verbally and physically, they shared the grief of a lost friend and colleague, and that seemed to be enough to put her back on task and level footing with him. He had expected some kind of change, some kind of alteration but not that and not so completely. He was still overwhelmed with love and appreciation for her. Just an hour ago, she had been vulnerable, needy, damn near weak with him - a total first for Brennan. Then she opened herself completely to him in a way that no woman ever had - or maybe he had opened up to her in a way he never had. He half expected her to withdraw from him again; he honestly expected some kind of backlash, or walls going up again when the sun came up. But he never expected that she would be – dare he think it – comfortable. She had always been very practical and accepted reality as a matter of course, but everything had changed for her, for them. Yet she was still Dr. Temperance Brennan of the Jeffersonian Institution and she had work to do in spite of all that she was feeling. Of course the whole thing was odd. This was not how he imagined it would be, but it seemed normal, it seemed right. It seemed appropriate in light of all the circumstances.

Brennan washed up in the bathroom and was surprise at how normal she felt regardless of all the emotions that were raging through her: joy, devastation, trepidation, fear, hope. So much had happened in the past twenty-four hours and so much would happen in the next twenty-four. They were by no means safe - physically or emotionally. The emotional stuff would just have to take a backseat again today. Broadsky was the top priority. No one else could die at his hands - no one. She caught her eye in the mirror. "No one," she said to herself but there was only one person on her mind when she was thinking that. She may as well have said it out loud, "Booth cannot die." She had a part to play in that, and would do all that she could. She would do what Booth needed.

She reentered from the bathroom, still naked and unembarrassed, and went to the living room to collect her clothes. In a moment, Booth got up, pulled on his boxers and followed after her. "Bones?"

"Will you allow me to go to the lab by myself?" she asked earnestly. "I'll need to take a cab as my car is not here and I'll need to stop at my apartment to shower and change."

Booth smiled. This could have been any other day to her except for the part where she was dressing in his living room and asked his permission. Of course for his part it was different enough that he knew what she looked like, what she felt like under those clothes. "No," he said evenly. "But I can be ready in five minutes." He needed to get his head back into the job. "I'm sorry we should have stopped by your apartment last night to pick up a change of clothes and a toothbrush at least. I have an extra." He hitched a thumb over his shoulder toward the bathroom. "It's new, never been used, still in the package." It felt weird offering her a toothbrush that was purchased for Ha- … another woman and not just any other woman.

She shrugged a nod and continued to dress.

She seemed Ok. She seemed like Brennan. He wondered if he were reading her correctly. Normally he wouldn't ask but that morning it was important to not assume anything. "Bones, are you OK?"

She paused and reflected on the question. "I still don't understand what Mr. Nigel Murray was saying and ..." She chocked up and her eyes watered. "And the reality of his death is still …." She wiped at her eyes and continued to dress. "But I assume in time ... I assume that stopping Broadsky will be some sort of retribution though that has never made sense to me either. Mr. Nigel Murray will still be dead."

The day before a comment like that would cause Booth to wince at the harshness of it, but he was back on track with her. He had understood her language again and knew that she was mourning the loss. "Yeah ... just some time." He wiped at his own face. "And you can bet we will get Broadsky." He stepped toward her and softened his tone. That wasn't the question he was trying to get answered. "What I meant to ask was … are we OK?"

She looked up into his eyes. For the first time she really noticed that he was very nearly naked and a surge of desire coursed through her coupled with a need to protect him. She had experienced him physically and emotionally in a way that was new. She knew how he moved and reacted while having sex. It was very liberating to have that kind of knowledge and she wanted to learn more – when the time was right. For the present they had a job to do, and Booth needed to stay alive. "Yes, of course."

Of course she would answer that way. Booth mentally slapped himself on the forehead. She wasn't going to miraculously turn into some clingy female now that she had experienced the great Seeley Booth. Temperance Brennan wasn't all of a sudden going to need assurances of love and fidelity and promises of forever. For a woman with no professed faith in the intangibles of life, she certainly did accept what people said at face value. He could treat her as he always had – more intimately of course - but not any differently. Did Booth need those assurances? Maybe. "Ok." He turned to go get dressed.

"Booth?" she called to him and waited for him to turn back. "Are we?"

He smiled softly at her. "Yes. Yes, of course. Better than."

She nodded but he saw in her eyes that she was ebbing back to uncertainty. She was a thinker and would think this thing through many times before they had a chance to be alone again. She wouldn't get an idea stuck in her head and fly off on some emotional tangent, but she could think her way into a box - he knew that first hand - it was his job to keep her thinking so she could work her way out. He stepped over to her and put his finger under her chin and lifted her face so her eyes were looking into his. "We're going to be fine," he corrected from certainly to an assurance of faith. It was a subtle difference it was not lost on either of them. "But we have a job to do today."

"Yes we do." She nodded and smiled weakly at him. She appreciated the assurance and was grateful to have the certainty taken off the table.

"It may not be today, Bones." He put his hands on her arms and rubbed them gently. "Broadsky may be in the wind. We'll catch him, you know that. But it may not be today."

"I know." She didn't like the idea that Broadsky maybe in their lives for the foreseeable future, but it was a very real possibility.

"We'll catch him," he stated in that cocky way of his.

"I know that too."

"Ok."

"Ok." He started to turn away but she grasped his forearm. "You'll be very careful, won't you? No unnecessary risks."

"None. I'll be very careful."

"You are better than Broadsky in every way," she said to herself more than Booth. "But please be careful."

"No hero stuff, I promise."

She smiled brightly. "You can't make that promise. You are a hero."

Booth put his hand over hers. She may not be a typical girl with the art of flattery, but she damn sure knew how to puff him up. "I'll be careful, Bones." He wanted to add more. He wanted to kiss her and assure her that he had one more reason to live and come back to her, but she didn't want that kind of assurance.

She nodded and released her grip on his arm. She turned to fold the sheets from the sofa. He watched her for a moment. He was going to tell her that he would take care of it later, but she seemed to need the activity.

He slipped from the room, showered and dressed and was back in seven minutes: FBI Standard Issue Black Suit, dark tie, sniper belt buckle, funky socks. He looked tired, but alert, aware and back in the game. She was dressed and waiting for him. The sheets and blankets had been folded and put away, his bed was made. She apparently needed something to do in those seven minutes.

They paused at the door. Once they crossed that threshold it would no longer be Booth and Brennan in the safety of their haven. The outside world would get between them, interfere and intrude. Their past would be standing right there to block their easy path. Questions would need to be answered for themselves, for each other and for their friends. They would be searching for answers to questions that they had yet to consider, but there was time - hopefully, there would be time for questions and answers.

He took her hand and pressed is warmly. He gave her a soft smile that lit his eyes. She returned it. Then he opened the door and the spell was broken. Vinent's death and Broadsky were right there to make sure that they didn't reveal in any joy they might possibly be thinking about feeling. He released her hand, and placed his on her back leading her out of the building. He was on alert all the way to her apartment and the lab and never stopped giving her instructions to maintain her safety. She accepted them all and told him that her day would consist of studying Leishenger's remains in the bone room, she was safe. To an untrained eye nothing had changed. To a casual observer, they were little more than estranged partners. But he held her look a little longer. She looked a little deeper into his eyes. There was an ever so slight smile. And the burden overshadowing everything was shared making it slightly easier to bear.

He walked her into the lab an up to her office. No one was around, it was too early. He took both her hands in his. "Be safe," he said again.

"Please stay in touch with me ... I'll need to know where you are."

"You'll know ... you always know." He smiled brightly. "Find me something I can use, OK?"

"I will."

He didn't know how to walk away. Kiss? Hug? Nothing? "You know I -," he hesitated.

"Yeah, me too."

"Right." His smiled broadened. "Right." He pressed her hands and tore himself away from her.

She stood watching him go. Should she have kissed him? Was that normal? Was anything normal the day after Vincent's death? She had work to do.

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

Booth made his way to the office his head full of everything. He was on the phone most of the way, which he knew was not the best defensive tactic, but he didn't believe Broadsky would be lying in wait. If he were in Broadsky's place, he'd make a break for it. Get out of town as quickly as possible. He was lying up information on Leishenger. The boss was being brought in. Everyone was on task.

He found himself with a moment's peace before the next round. He went to the window, the very same window he had scolded Brennan for standing in front of the day before. His head filled with thoughts of her again. He still wasn't regretting the step they had taken, but he wished he was sure it was for the right reasons. He almost felt like he took advantage of her in a vulnerable state. That was so far from the truth, but they had come too far to screw up now.

He was out of his element with her, out of his comfort zone. He always had been. It's what attracted him from the beginning. She was so different, so raw, so real, no games, nothing that he was used to. He was used to women like Rebecca, Cam, Hannah or the dozen or so other women he had dated since meeting Brennan. Not really game players in the worst sense of the term, still vastly different than Brennan. He didn't need to hedge or be careful with his phrasing around Brennan. At least he never used to. Maybe that would change. Maybe she was just like every other woman in the world and needed all the assurances that a woman in love needs.

In Love?

Was she in love with him? She loved him. She said so. But was she in love with him? Was he with her?

He pulled his phone out of his pocket and speed dialed her number.

"Hey," he said softly.

"Hi," she was a little surprised to hear from him. "I don't have anything for you yet."

"No, no ... I didn't think you would. Leishenger's boss is going to be here in a minute."

"Do you want me to be there to help you interrogate him?"

"No," he said but he did want her there. He thought faster when she was around. "No, you need to get me something from Leishenger's remains that might point me in the right direction."

"I'm working on it."

"I know. I know. Thanks, Bones." He didn't want to hang up. He wanted to tell her something. "I just want to keep you in the loop." He wanted to add that he wanted to check in with her to see how she was doing with everything.

"Thank you." She didn't want to hang up either.

"Ok ... well ... I should probably get back ..."

She didn't respond.

"Bones?"

"Thank you," she said again softly with a lot more feeling.

"For keeping you in the loop? I said I would."

"That ... and for last night ... this morning ... I don't know what I would have done if I were alone last night. You knew that, I didn't. Thank you."

That was all he needed. All he needed was to know that she was thinking about him, and about them and about that morning and what she was thinking was not bad. "Sure." Normally he would have blown if off with a banal comment like that's _what friends are for_, or something similarly inane about partners but they were beyond partners and friends now. "I'll always be there for you, Bones."

"I know." She would take the assurance as it was intended and not as a promise that couldn't be made.

It was time for an admission, one he should have made before. "It was a little selfish too."

She smiled. "Good."

They said good bye at the same time and each hung up.

Booth slipped the phone back into his pocket. He had no idea how to proceed with Brennan when this Broadsky thing was over: More of the same ... with benefits? Dates and flowers? Somewhere in between? Something completely different? All he knew was that it was finally moving and it felt ... right in spite of how wrong everything was.

A knock came on his door and he was snapped back to Broadsky and all that came with it.

"Yeah?"

"Matt Leishenger's boss is in the interrogation room," said Special Agent Shaw.

"Hilton Trucking right?"

"Yes sir." She paused. "The kid who was killed in the lab? Was he a friend of yours?"

"Yes he was."

"I'm sorry for your loss."

"Well you know what, don't be sorry," he forced a smile. "Help me get revenge."

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

Brennan put her phone away her head again filled with Booth. She had Leishenger's skull in her hands and was studying it, but her mind was not on it. She knew she needed to work, to focus, to find something that meant anything that would be helpful. The truth was, maybe there wasn't anything to find, but she had to try. She had to do something.

Thoughts of her experience with Booth crept into the edges of her mind. It was quite distracting. The sex was only part of it. Being held by him, comforted by him when she was so raw, so vulnerable, so needy was a new experience for her. She hadn't needed anyone in nearly twenty years. She hadn't broken down like that with anyone, for anyone probably in her whole life. She had of course experienced death, loss, grief but she never let herself feel it so viscerally. She had always intellectualized it. She truly was changing. She claimed she was improving, but it didn't feel like an improvement. It felt very scary. She felt safe with Booth. He made it safe.

Angela strolled into the room.

"Hey, you've been staring at Leishenger's skull for like a really long time." She forced a smile. "Trying to get that thing to talk to you?"

"Are you being metaphoric?"

"No, I was just trying to lighten the mood, didn't work."

"The mastoid process is generally not a target in close quarter combat. Perhaps I should examine it microscopically."

"You told me that an hour ago. What is going on? Is this about Vincent?"

Brennan looked down and felt shame and sadness. "Yes."

"Yeah."

"And ..." She looked up at Angela. "I got into bed with Booth last night."

Angela was stunned and shocked and speechless. Angela was never speechless.

"Why aren't you saying anything," Brennan pressed.

"Because ... I don't want to yell Hallelujah so close to losing Vincent."

"I think I did it because of Vincent."

"Wait ... whoa ... what exactly happened after you ... after you crawled into bed with Booth?"

Brennan was struck with a sense of guilt over actions and an odd smile crossed her face as she looked for the words to answer Angela.

Hodgins came flying into the room. "I got the GC Mass Spec results on the bullet that killed Vincent."

"Honey No," Angela shouted. "Not right now. I'm sorry ... I love you but ... go tell Cam. Go ... Away ... AWAY!"

Hodgins left very confused.

"That could be very important," Brennan said.

"Sweetie, this is important. This is important. So what ... you just drove over to his apartment and got into bed with him?"

"No, I stayed at his place."

"He invited you into his bed?"

"No, just to his apartment. He was trying to protect me from Broadsky; that's the reason he gave. I was sleeping on the couch."

"What was the real reason you stayed there?"

"I think he knew," Brennan hedged.

"Knew what?"

"That I would have a difficult time processing Vincent's death - not how he died by why."

"So what happened?"

"I woke him up ... it was late, early rather. We talked about Vincent. He tried to help me make some sense out of it - but there is not sense. Then I cried on his shoulder ... literally."

"Of course you did." Angela smirked. "So, is that all that happened?"

Brennan again was washed with guilt. "No."

"NO? Really ... I mean no ... there was more. A lot more or a little more?"

"Well it was very early in the morning and we had to get to work."

Angela was exasperated. "Did you have sex?"

"Yes."

"Was it great?" Angela dished. "Don't tell me ... no tell me?"

"It wasn't what I expected, but I think we were both affected by Vincent's death. In fact that is the reason he pushed it further. He said we had lost too much time already."

"Time? Lost too much time?" Angela laughed nervously.

"Was that wrong?" Brennan really needed to be told the truth as she didn't know how to think about it. "It feels a little opportunistic."

"No Sweetie, it's not wrong and it's not the other thing." She came around the table and took Brennan's hand. "If Booth were any other man, I would have said it was a line, but not from him and definitely not to you. Did he tell you he loved you?"

"Yes."

"Did you say it back?"

"Yes."

"And you meant it."

"Of course."

"And this morning? How was this morning? How did you part?"

Brennan shrugged. "We're OK."

"OK?"

"Yeah."

"Does that mean that this is not a one night thing and then back to business as usual."

Brennan shook her head. "I don't expect it to be _business as usual_ after we catch Broadsky."

Angela still hadn't gotten a read on her. "So ... are you happy about this?"

"Yes ... but I don't think this should be broadcast around, you know?"

"I understand."

"We need some time to sort it out ourselves, you know?"

"Is that what he said?"

"No, we didn't talk about it. I can count on you?"

"Of course, Sweetie. I won't even tell Hodgins... for a day or two." She smiled broadly. "I'm happy for you." She pulled her into a tight hug.

Brennan still didn't share Angela's exuberance, but she was happy too.


	3. Chapter 3

**That's Why I'm Here**

By LizD

Written June 2011

Chapter Three

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

Angela and Brennan sat in the lounge waiting for what seemed like too long. The last thing they heard from Booth was: _you may have just saved my life_, before the phone disconnected.

"Don't worry, Sweetie," Angela said. "Booth is the best." She paused hoping for a reaction. "And Broadsky is injured."

"I know," Brennan dismissed but it was clear that she was still terrified.

"Booth has the advantage."

"And he knows it." Brennan shook her head. She couldn't talk about it. She hated the part where she had to sit and wait.

This situation - Booth in mortal danger and Brennan helpless - was the very thing that terrified her enough to pause their partnership not so long ago but this time it felt different. Booth had a dangerous job; he dealt with dangerous people. She helped from the lab or in the field, but she couldn't protect him. Earlier her fear had gripped her so tightly that she needed Hodgins to translate her findings to Booth make them useful. She used to be able to translate for him; he relied on her for that. If she couldn't do that what good was she to him? Did she freeze because they had had sex? Was this the part where they had to decide that people involved in a romantic relationship should not work together? She pushed that thought away. She didn't want to believe that she had lost the ability to be helpful to Booth in the field because fear gripped her. The other possibility was that they had grown so far apart that she didn't know how to talk to him anymore. Everything was different. She had known Booth for years. She used to know him better than anyone else, but at the moment he was still familiar but changed. She had expected that once they had agreed to be together they would get back that ease of partnership they had before; before she went to Maluku, before he asked for more, before it all went away. Maybe all they needed was time for that too. How much time? Would there be time?

She brushed it all aside and focused on the phone. She promised herself that if - no when given another chance she would not freeze up like that again. She didn't believe she could make such a promise but she felt better having done it.

"Sweetie?" Angela prompted. "It's alright to be scared, Bren. I'm scared too."

Brennan shook her head to prevent her from pushing any further. "Booth is the best," Brennan said evenly. "Broadsky is injured," she repeated.

"Bren?"

Brennan caught her eye and put voice to her concern. "It feels different ... it shouldn't ... but it feels different," Brennan said.

"Because of Broadsky or because of ..."

Brennan shook slightly to imply that the difference wasn't due to Broadsky.

Angela was about say something else but thankfully for Brennan Hodgins came up and interrupted them. He glanced between the women. They had a secret it and it was a good secret. He didn't need his genius IQ to know that.

Then Cam and Sweets joined the group. If they noticed anything, they didn't show it. Odds were good they didn't notice.

They all sat and waited silently. The tension was high.

The phone rang and Brennan dove to answer it.

"Brennan." It was Agent Shaw. Brennan's heart clenched and then relaxed. "Yes, I understand. ... Thank you." She hung up and looked to her companions. "Booth got Broadsky." A smile edged her mouth. There was a collective cheer! The friends with a secret shared a knowing look.

Brennan was overwhelmed with relief. She knew Booth would be tied up for hours, but she needed to see him. She didn't even know where he would be, but she had to see him. She got up to leave.

"Dr. Brennan," Sweets called to her. "Where are you going?"

"I ... I need to ..." She was at a loss for words. "I need to go."

"We will be sending Vincent's body back tonight," Cam said.

"Yes, I know ... I'll be here."

Without another word she left. Cam and Sweets shared a look of exasperation. Brennan would just never be ... normal. Hodgins took his cue from Angela, who was just beaming with joy, and smiled too.

Cam and Sweets felt the need to celebrate. "Dr. Saroyan, may I buy you a cup of coffee?"

"Absolutely." They walked away which left Angela and Hodgins alone.

"What's going on with Dr. Brennan?" he asked.

"I can't tell you." She grinned.

"You can't tell me that she and Booth did it - are doing it?"

"How did you know?" She feigned a look of shock, but was relieved she didn't have to keep the secret.

"I didn't," he said. "Not until right now." He was so clever. "Hallelujah! It's about time."

"You can't say anything," Angela urged.

"Lips are sealed." He kissed her. "On one condition."

"Oh?" She leaned into him.

"You tell me everything." He turned toward her and waited to get all the juicy details. Angela wished she had more to tell, but they could use their imagination.

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

Brennan had called Booth as soon as she got in the car but it went right to voice mail. She called him again when she got to the Hoover Building.

"Bones," he answered hurriedly. His voice was definitely lighter, brighter, happier. "We got him."

"You got him," she corrected.

"Not without your help."

She was still feeling a badly about freezing up on him. "I'm glad you didn't have to kill him."

Booth snorted a laugh. "Yeah, me too." It was so nice to hear her voice. "Where are you?"

"At the Hoover Building."

"Good," he was really pleased that she was there. "I should be in my office in about ten minutes."

"I'll wait."

"I can't stay long. There will be a lot of paperwork on this one that needs to be done PDQ and no screw ups."

"I'll wait."

There was a stiff pause. Both wanted to say that three-word hackneyed expression that new lovers say to each other ad nauseum, or old lovers say by wrote, but it didn't feel right.

"I'll hurry."

"Take your time. I'm not going anywhere."

He smiled brightly again and it could be heard in her voice. "That's right ... nowhere without me."

Booth was the first to end the call. Brennan felt better for having spoken to him. She just needed to be sure he was OK.

Brennan waited in Booth's office. The last time she was there her mind was flooded with thoughts of Mr. Nigel Murray and fear about Broadsky. It was true what she had thought before. There was a modicum of retribution about catching Broadsky, but Mr. Nigel Murray was still dead. Sadness overtook her again. He was so young. He was so innocent. He didn't deserve to die. No one should have died at Broadsky's hands. But he was caught now and the healing process could begin. Brennan shook her head at that expression: _healing process_. She had heard many people use it but it made no sense. She was not physically injured. There was no physical wound to heal. But she still ached at the loss of him. If these were the feelings that she was no longer impervious to, she wondered why she made the effort to change. It hurt. Booth walked in and her heart was lifted. There were other feelings that didn't hurt.

He pulled her into a big bear hug; she fitted into him like they were two parts of a whole. He released her quickly and looked back out to the bullpen. No one was watching them. In fact there was no one there at all. They were all in the break room celebrating. Booth turned back to her. He smiled and stole a kiss quickly.

"I'm glad you're alright," she said tentatively.

"You did it again, Bones. That information about his hand was just what I needed to take the advantage. It allowed me to get the drop on him. I didn't have to kill him. I would have, but I didn't have to. You're amazing."

She wanted to apologize for freezing up. "I know bones," she admitted.

"And thank God for that."

"What does God have to do with it?"

He shook his head and smiled. Even she was not going to goad him into a debate on religion. "Nothing. Everything." He took her hands. "It's over, Bones. All over but the paperwork."

"And the trial."

"Caroline can prosecute this -."

"In her PJs," Brennan finished.

"Exactly." This was where Booth should have said something about what was next: an invitation to dinner, drinks, something, but he was too focused on finishing the processing for Broadsky. He assumed there would be a next, he certainly wanted a next, but he wasn't thinking about how to be a gentleman and ask her for dinner, or whatever it is that gentlemen do the day after.

"We are sending Mr. Nigel Murray's body home tonight," she stated offering the instance for their next meeting.

"When?"

"Nine o'clock. Would you come?"

"Of course." They didn't have to worry about what protocol was for the separation this time. Agent Shaw had come to tell Booth that he was needed. They were partners again, not new lovers. "I'll see you there," he said. Just before he slipped from the room he caught and held her eye. Once again they communicated without words. They were getting back on the same page.

Brennan's head was filled with too many thoughts to regulate. She needed to clear her head and make some order out of them. A walk by the reflecting pool would serve adequately.

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

Booth was on top of the world. He caught the bad guy AND he got the girl. What more could a hero ask for? He felt like shouting it from the roof tops, but his Super Ego forced him to reign it all in. Besides he had barely enough time to think much less climb to a roof top and shout out to the world. Nearly everyone in the Bureau came up to him and slapped him on the back. The boss, the boss's boss and the boss's boss's boss all came down and shook his hand and clapped him on the shoulder. Drinks were offered and plans made. This was a big fish that Booth caught and it needed to be recognized in the Bureau way.

Caroline passed him in the hall and said "Had to shoot him in the leg, huh?" He assured her that she would have an airtight case. She was unimpressed with his assurance. She studied him for a moment. "There's something different," she stated with a cocked eyebrow.

"It's been a rough few days."

"It certainly has … and you look … I shutter to think … you look happy. And not your typical catching-the-bad-guy happy either." Booth couldn't keep the grin off his face. She scanned him up and down. "Be careful, cher. Happy is a new color for you. Gonna take some getting used to." He assured her that everything was good and that he was just glad he was able to bring Broadsky in.

As he was processing the paper work his mind had a chance to slow down and think. Naturally the _stuff_ that had been tabled was front and center. Of course the big one was Bones. The first thought that crossed his mind was why he was so unwilling to share the information with Caroline. Was it really just that there was no specific information to share? They needed to talk about how they would proceed until then it was a great secret for him alone. His mind wandered back to that morning. What had prompted him? It was rare that Booth had a woman in his bed that he wasn't having sex with. It was more than rare – it had never happened before; which isn't to say that he had sex every night but if there was a woman in his bed they were past that part in a relationship. But that wasn't why. Their relationship was headed that way. They would have done it sooner or later. But that wasn't why either. He hadn't been waiting for her to make a move, but she clearly was waiting for him. If he were waiting, coming to him in the middle of the night and crying on his shoulder was a move of some kind. But Brennan didn't play games like that. Even if she did, that wasn't why he took it to the next level. Hell, it wasn't even about timing – though they certainly had wasted enough of it. It was about love- completely about love. He knew it. He felt it. It was real. More real than it ever was.

When he woke up from that coma dream thing – whatever – he thought he was in love with her. For nearly a year after that he gathered evidence for and against and tried to read her for and against. He should have come right out and asked her, but there was no point in doing the shoulda, coulda, wouldas. When she turned him down after his half assed attempt, it was as if he slammed a door on those feelings and for the last year or more he had been shoving every tender feeling he had for her away. She was just a friend, just a partner, just someone who was in his life. It was not pretty but she endured it. Then Hannah was gone and he was angry, but he was free to think about Brennan as he wanted to and when he wanted to. She had proven herself a good friend. She had proven herself a stable partner through it all. She had openly acknowledged her mistake and regret, made an effort to change and stated her desire to be together. The ball was in his court. But he didn't feel it at least not until that morning.

It wasn't a tit for tat. He didn't lose his anger because she lost her imperviousness. Booth made a mental note to check the meaning on that to make sure there wasn't some scientific meaning that he was missing. It was simply … he loved her, he wanted her, he needed her. It wasn't selfish. And it wasn't opportunistic. It was plain and simple – love.

He caught sight of his reflection in the glass of the observation room. He did look happy and it did look different on him. Of course the real issue was that nothing was ever plain and simple with Bones when science wasn't involved.

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

Brennan slipped her arm through Booth's as they watched the hearse drive away. The memorial would continue at the Founding Fathers with the entire staff including a few security guards and the other interns. There were stories told about Vincent and lots of laughing in remembering his life. There were toasts made and everyone would leave with a lighter heart. Anytime anyone would think of one of Vincent little factoids they would share it. From then on, useless facts were known as VNMs. Brennan and Booth were there with the rest. Brennan was quiet but attentive and shared a few of her stories about Mr. Nigel Murray too. To everyone's surprise they were actually very sweet stories that were not awkwardly told. To their greater surprise, Brennan picked up the check. She didn't make a bid deal about it, but when the waiter was asked for the check so people could start throwing in money, he informed them that it was taken care of and nodded toward Brennan. She didn't say anything and wanted nothing said to her. She didn't even consider that it was a nice thing to do. The bartender asked about the tab at the beginning, she handed him her credit card and that was it. People parted. It would take a while for life to get back to normal, but it would never be the same. They had shared something devastating and each felt it in their own way.

Booth and Brennan were the last to leave. They stood outside waiting for the taxi. Both their cars were still at the Hoover Building, but neither was in a condition to drive. The taxi pulled up. Brennan moved toward the door. Booth remained on the sidewalk he wasn't sure what was next. She turned back and saw his apprehension. She reached out her hand to him. He took it and slipped into the taxi beside her. She gave her address and the taxi drove away. No words were exchanged in the short ride to her apartment, but their hands stayed firmly entwined and her head rested on his shoulder, his leaning against hers. Lovers.


	4. Chapter 4

**That's Why I'm Here**

By LizD

Written June 2011

**Chapter Four**

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

Brennan waited anxiously as Booth paid the driver. She didn't know why she was anxious. She had known Booth for too long and it was reasonable to believe that they were consenting to this next evolution of their relationship so there should be no second guessing about the other's motives or their own. It still felt a little wrong that they had gotten together so quickly after Vincent's death or that it took a death to get them to put aside any of the residual issues they had, but those were the facts. It was just that she had held her breath - metaphorically – for so long waiting for Booth that she was unsure about letting it out - metaphorically.

Booth over tipped the cabbie. He didn't typically over tip but he was in a good mood. He turned and saw her anxious smile. How could this woman, this unique combination of brains and beauty, of worldliness and naiveté, of strength and vulnerability, be the woman who captured … more than his heart. She had captured his soul. She was not his type. First off she was brunette; Booth had always been a sucker for blondes - but that wasn't a deal breaker. She was challenging; he liked easy - not that kind of easy but that kind was good too occasionally. She was serious; he liked playful. She was hyper rational; he was all about instinct, gut instinct. He did like smart women, and Brennan was definitely smart; smarter than he was. She was richer than he was too and more renown. The balance of those scales was never likely tip to his favor. Yet too long ago to remember exactly what he felt he met her and had to have her in his life – whatever that meant. Finally after all those years and all that history, he was getting what he had wanted from the beginning.

A shock of uncertainty surged through him. What if he was only good with the chase? What if he was one of those guys that didn't want what he had and only wanted what he couldn't have? What if he had no follow through? He had blamed being alone on Rebecca, Brennan and Hannah - but what if he was the reason. He was the common denominator. What if his string of relationships ended because he was just not cut out to be tied down? Beyond anything else, he had to keep her in his life and a failed relationship with Brennan would ruin more than a love affair; it would ruin their friendship, their partnership.

"Booth?" she called to him seeing his face change color.

Or would it? Brennan was the queen of compartmentalization. If any woman was able to maintain a friendship, a partnership, it was Brennan. He could learn from her; he could follow her lead if it came down to it. And who knows, maybe this time it would not end. He shook his fears away, smiled at her warmly to sooth some of her anxiety - as well as his own - and took her hand. Together they walked into her building.

**x|x x|x x|x**

Her apartment was dark and warm. They had been there that morning long enough for her to shower and change and turn up the heat apparently - which they forgot to turn down when they left. She attended to that and opened the windows in the bedrooms. Booth took care of the windows in the living room and opened the balcony doors. It was nice not to be afraid of what was outside the windows. That's where she found him when she came back.

"Would you like something to drink?" she asked.

"Sure," he said quickly. He really didn't want any more alcohol. Do you have any of that juice … that … what's it called?"

"The pomegranate blueberry?"

Booth made a face. "How about just some water." Brennan nodded and turned toward the kitchen. "With ice, if you have it." He pulled his tie free, took off his suit coat and tossed them on the back of the lounger. He loosened a few buttons of his shirt before rolling up his cuffs. It wasn't quite as hot as he was making it out, but the cool of outside felt good against his skin.

Booth's top-of-the-world mood had tempered a bit in the course of the evening owning strictly to the nature of what they were doing. The memorial for Vincent – he would never forget his name again – was very, very nice. Wendell, Clark, Arastoo, Fisher, Daisy and Hodgins had some great stories to tell. Bob and Doug, the security guards, kept them in stitches for a good thirty minutes about Vincent's first day back at work that fall. Booth didn't quite catch it all but it had something to do with his ID card and suntan lotion. Cam was very quiet; Booth made time to check in with her in the course of the evening. She was still the same old Cam – strong and resilient, a credit to Brooklyn, but this one hit her hard. Paul was there, she had her home support. Booth let her be but let her know that if she needed to talk he was there for her. Booth also noticed that Daisy and Sweets barely looked at each other, didn't sit near each other and never spoke to each other. Booth had to wonder, but he wouldn't ask. A few months back Sweets chose not to propose again, things must have gone really downhill from then.

It was different for Booth being in that group that night and not just because of Vincent and the residual guilt that edged his mind. No one knew, as far as he knew, about the turn his relationship with Brennan had taken; at least no one was treating him or them differently. Angela hugged him a little harder when she left, and Hodgins' smile was a little broader, but he didn't think anything of it. He felt closer to them all. He felt closer than he had felt since before going to Afghanistan. They were Brennan's family; they were her people. He has stay away a lot over the past nine months for various reasons that he never fully recognized. Now they were his in a more profound way. He and Brennan were the same as ever. They sat next to each other most of the evening, but didn't have any private conversations. There were a few glances that were held a little longer but no actual PDAs. He would have said that it was a normal night out for drinks with the gang except for the fact that they were missing Vincent.

"Here you go," Brennan said handing him a glass of water. She had kicked off her shoes and pulled her shirt tail out. She sat down in a lounger on the balcony. Her face glowed in the moonlight. He took a big sip of water but it didn't satisfy his thirst. He leaned down and kissed her. She laughed and pulled away after returning the kiss of course. "Cold," she said wiping his mouth. "Your lips are cold."

Booth made a mental note to have some ice play with her in the summer. He took the chair next to her moving it closer so he could rest his hand on her arm. He liked being free to touch her so innocently. He looked out into the night. "Hell of a day, huh?"

"Yes it was." She paused for a moment. "The day is not over yet," she offered.

He snapped his attention back to her. Was she flirting with him? Was she suggesting …? A slow lusty smile crossed his lips.

"I just meant that it's only 10PM. There are two more hours left in the day officially."

"Right," he said. "Officially." In the future he would react differently. In the future he would take her right there, but not that night. That night he wanted some time just to be – be with her to talk or not talk but just to be together with no agenda, no activity, nothing, just be. It had been so long since he was just easy and relaxed with her. Had he ever been?

"You haven't told me about what happened with Broadsky," she said giving him an opening to talk.

"What's to tell?"

"It must have been difficult for you. He used to be a friend."

"Not a friend, Bones. Never a friend. We were in the service together. I respected his skills." Booth chuckled to himself. He didn't want to get too serious. "But he turned to the dark side."

Brennan shook her head not understanding.

Booth just smiled. For the first time since he met her, since the first time she got an expression wrong, since she didn't understand a cultural reference, since she first said 'I don't understand,' Booth actually reveled in the idea of teaching her about his world. "Next time we have nine hours free, we are going to sit down and do a Star Wars marathon."

"The Strategic Defense Initiative? That was determined to be impossible with the existing technology in 1987 and is still not in production."

"Not that Star Wars, Bones." He pulled her hand to his lips and kissed it affectionately. "This is SyFy … Science Fiction?"

"So was that, apparently."

They were quiet for a long moment. Booth was just happy to be resting and having her by his side. Brennan's mind never stopped moving - that was nothing new.

This whole experience was new to her. Any other time she had had a man in her apartment with the expectation of sex to follow, she would be the aggressor. Brennan really enjoyed her physical side. She spent so much time in her head and following intellectual pursuits that when she had a chance to just be physical it was very stimulating. This time however there was the fabled love component to consider. So it was different; she had to be different. Booth enjoyed his alpha male status and he enjoyed being the aggressor sexually - that much was clear from that morning. He was an excellent lover so that was not a role that she minded giving up. But the turn in their relationship was not solely about sex. Yes, it was the main ingredient that was added to the mix, but everything wasn't shifted to that one element. This was new to her; she would have to let him lead and she would follow until she understood the parameters.

"What happens now?" she asked tentatively.

He looked over at her to read her expression. She had a look of real worry on her face. He sat up and turned toward her. "Anything we want."

"I told Angela," Brennan confessed.

"So Hodgins knows," he concluded. That explained the grin.

"She said she wouldn't tell him," Brennan defended. "But he probably knows." She looked down for a moment and then back up. "Is that OK?"

His face broadened into a very nice smile. "Of course it's OK. I've been a little busy and ..."

"And ... what?"

"I like having it between us."

"Are you saying we shouldn't ..." She worried that he wanted to go back. That he thought it was a mistake or that they were moving too fast.

"I'm not saying that at all," he corrected quickly worried that maybe she thought he wanted to go back to the way things were.

"So we should keep us a secret?" She was again nervous. "Because of work?"

"No. They can't say anything to us. They can't do anything. It's a guideline, not a policy that agents and civilian consultants not be involved. We're fine."

"You had suggested at one time -."

"I know. I know." He shook his head. "Doesn't apply to us."

She didn't understand why not but tried to find a reason. "I haven't been in the field with you that much recently."

"That'll change," he said quickly.

She still didn't understand why it needed to be kept a secret. "Are you ashamed?"

"No, no, no Bones. I'm not ashamed. How could you think that? No. And I don't want to keep secrets but there are just some things that don't need to be discussed with people who aren't involved, understand? This is you and me - us ... if we let our friends, our colleagues have permission to discuss this with us ... they'll have an opinion. We don't need another opinion."

"Sweets will have a lot to say."

Booth nodded. "Yes he will and frankly I really don't want any more of Sweets' advice. I have followed it a time or three and had some pretty bad results."

Brennan looked down. She was feeling guilty over refusing Booth that night that Sweets pushed him into asking. It was the catalyst for a whole chain of events that could very easily have destroyed any future they might have together. "I'm sorry," she said tentatively.

Her refusal was the last thing on his mind. He was thinking about several other times when he followed Sweets' advice: the proposal to Hannah, revealing Brennan's change of heart to Hannah, keeping his feelings to himself when he woke up from his coma dream. There were others but those were enough to convince him that Sweets didn't always know what was best. "Sorry?"

"Yes ... the time we have lost -." She felt completely responsible for that.

"Hey, Bones ... let's get one thing perfectly clear. We are here now, right? Same place, same time, same direction – right?" She nodded but wasn't sure if that were strictly true. "It doesn't matter how we got here or how long we took. OK? We are here and I expect this thing between us to last."

"You can't know that."

"I know what my expectations are, don't I?"

She had to give him that. "Yes."

"So what are you worried about?" he asked warmly if a little dismissively. He wanted to get back to the happy part.

She looked him in the eye for a long moment. "Change ... I don't like change."

"Change can be scary," he agreed.

"But change is necessary ... and it's what I want." She looked over at him. "This change is what I want. Change that brings us closer."

"Me too." Clearly Brennan needed some reassurance that he was there because he wanted to be. He stood up, pulled her to standing with him. He wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her close which forced her to put her hands on his arms. She slid them slowly up his biceps feeling the contours of his muscles. Those extra curls were really paying off now as it was clear she liked what he had. He kissed her tenderly. He looked back into her eyes. "Yeah ... closer is good - very good."

She stepped back out of his embrace, but took his hand and led him through the living room to her bedroom. Their stamina was low after the long day they had, adrenaline helped for a short while but that was all they needed. Then they found a new joy: falling into a safe and comfortable sleep in each other's arms.

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

Booth slept through the first two calls as his phone was in his jacket on the balcony. He woke to the ringtone of Brennan's phone on the nightstand next to him which sounded a lot like his. Without realizing his mistake he picked it up.

"Booth!" he barked.

"Booth? What are you doing answering my daughter's phone at six o'clock in the morning," Max asked with an element of joy in his voice. "Did I wake you up? Why were you sleeping with my daughter's phone?" Max couldn't help himself. He had last scene Brennan in April and she had told him about their elevator experience and their discussion. He knew it was only a matter of time and that it would be another matter of time before he was told. Brennan had called him and told him about Vincent, but they didn't have a chance to talk. This was his first opportunity. "Booth?"

"Max?" Booth sat up and wiped at his face.

Brennan rolled over and through a tussle of hair and bed sheets reached for the phone. Booth was all too happy to hand it over. "Dad? What time is it?" Both Booth and Max said that it was 6:13AM. "Too early," she grumbled.

"Late night, honey?" Max asked playfully.

"Let me call you later," she said groggily. "You OK?"

"I'm fine ... You seem fine too. Is Booth fine?"

"Fine," she grumbled.

"Nothing like a little crisis to cut through all the bullshit and get to what's important."

"Bye dad." She ended the call and tucked the phone under her pillow. "Come back here," she said reaching for Booth. "Cold."

"You're a grumpy girl in the morning, aren't you?" Booth slid back down and curled into her.

"Sleepy. Shhhhhhh."

He was just settling back to get some more sleep when he heard the muffled sound of the phone. "Is that your dad calling back?" She pulled the phone out from under her pillow. Her phone wasn't ringing. "Damn. It must be mine."

He pulled away from her in spite of her protestations and trudged to the living room trying to remember where he left the phone. He realized it was in his suit coat on the balcony. He was not dressed for outside but he didn't realize that until he was out there pulling his phone from his jacket pocket. He noticed Ms. Adams across the way having her coffee and reading the paper. She was a sweet lady in her late fifties from Memphis that Booth had helped once a year or so ago with a break in. She always smiled at him and clearly thought he was cute. That morning she had a little too much to smile about. Reflexively Booth sucked in his stomach, puffed out his chest and rose to his full height. Ms Adams seemed more disappointed than shocked or pleased. Sometimes too much information is just too much. She smiled and waved anyway and went back to her paper.

Booth missed the call. It was from Caroline as were the other two he missed. He trudged back into the living room closing the balcony door behind him. Brennan plodded into the kitchen and started fussing with the coffee.

Booth caught his reflection in a mirror and sized himself up. "Think I need to hit the gym," he said to himself.

"Your abdominal muscles are not as tone as they have been and your lats could use a little work." He turned to her appalled at her brutal honesty. "And you could cut back on the French fries and pie." She shrugged. "You have a nice gluteus maximus."

"So you like my ass, huh?" He turned his back toward the mirror and looked around to inspect it. He liked what he saw. He trotted off to the bedroom to retrieve his boxer-briefs. When he came back he was calling Caroline; his stomach was still sucked in.

"Caroline ... it is not even 6:30 in the AM. What's so important? ... What? ... What? ... They can't have him. ... Neither can they. ... We caught him it's our jurisdiction. ... War crimes? Are you kidding me? ... I don't care. ... Judge who? ... Where? ... Where? ... When is the transfer? ... No. ... No. ... No, I'm doing it. I don't trust anyone else. ... When does this go down? ... I'll be right there. ... Ten minutes. ... Thanks, Caroline." Booth hung up. "I don't believe it. I don't freaking believe it."

"What's happening?"

"Well in less than eighteen hours we now have a jurisdictional fight going on over Broadsky. Dallas HRT wants him and so does the US Army. Apparently there was no honorable discharge and some of his actions have come to light."

"What does that mean?"

"It means that there is going to be a fight about who gets to take him to trial first. Since our crimes are the most recent we are less ready to go to trial than Dallas PD or the Army."

"So what does that mean?"

"It means he is being transferred to maximum security at Leavenworth pending the outcome of this jurisdictional debate."

"Leavenworth?"

"Yeah, that just means to me that the judge is leaning toward the US Army."

"Why are you so angry? As long as he is in jail, that's all that matters right?"

"Yeah, I guess." He was not happy about this development. "It is more likely that they USMJ will throw the book at him and he will never see the light of day, or will be shot in a firing squad."

"They don't do that anymore."

"Doesn't matter ... him killing a bunch of criminals is just not priority."

"What about his innocent victims?"

"They will just have to get vicarious justice." He wiped his hands across his face. "Damn it!" he exclaimed. "Damn it. Damn it. Damn it. This was going to be a really good day."

"I don't understand."

He sat down at the counter and took the offered coffee. "We had the day off, Bones. Thought we would ... you know ... spend it together. It would have started by sleeping a few more hours and not saying the name Broadsky."

"That would have been a very good day."

"I know, right?" He smiled at her. "Now I have to take that bastard to Leavenworth."

"Should I come with you?"

Booth appeared to like that idea at first. "No. It won't be any fun and I don't want you exposed to Broadsky's drivel. There will another agent and to MPs. It's not really a fun getaway. But I will be away for a couple of days. Probably won't make it back until Saturday." He balled up his fist and pounded it on the counter. "I have Parker this weekend."

"I can pick him up."

"What?"

"I can pick him up on Friday … or Saturday morning."

"You would? What would you do with him?"

Brennan was at first surprised by the questions, but then hurt that maybe he didn't want her bonding any more with Parker when he wasn't around. "If you would rather I didn't."

"No, no … I didn't mean … I mean, I think it would be great if you did. But I am sure you had plans."

"Plans change."

"They do."

"I thought Parked liked me," she protested.

"Parker loves you. And I am sure he would have a great time with you. Are you sure?"

"Is this wrong? Is this something that I shouldn't have offered?" She was getting really confused.

"Just not used to it," he defended.

"Hannah didn't help you with your parenting duties with Parker?"

"No." Booth so didn't want to talk about Hannah. Not that morning, not any morning in the near future. He was barely dressed and she had this great robe that clung to her in all the right ways as he had hours before. "Let's not," he started. "Let's agree that whatever happens between us is separate and apart from any of the other relationships we have had, OK? I don't want to be compared to Sully or your underwater welder and you … you are unique too."

She felt scolded again. "Ok."

"Bones," he called to her. "I'm sorry I have to go."

"I understand," she said with absolutely no attitude. There may have been a hundred things she didn't understand, but she knew about duties and responsibilities and she didn't confuse those with personal desires.

"What will you say to Parker?"

"About what?"

"About … you know … us."

"I assumed you would want to discuss it with him first." Again no attitude. It was just plain and simple pragmatic Brennan.

"How about we tell him together on Saturday night when I get back?"

"Sure."

"Pizza and a movie?"

"Ok."

"I really need to get down to the bureau." He stood up. "Guess I need to get dressed." He came around the counter and pulled her close. "I'm really sorry. This is not what I had in mind for today."

She squirmed a little in his arms. You can tell me all about what your plans were when we have time."

"You know I will." He kissed her.

"There is a towel and toothbrush in the bathroom."

"You trying to tell me something?" He kissed her again. "Bones," he said before releasing her. "I love you."

"I know."

"You could say it back," he prompted.

"I love you too."

He was dressed and ready to go in less than ten minutes. She waited in the kitchen with her coffee which wasn't tasting that good that morning. Oddly even though he was leaving her so quickly, it felt good having him showering in her shower and knowing that he would be coming home to her in two days time – to her and to his son. It felt really good.

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

**A/N:** Ok we are going off the map here for a bit until it is time to hook back up for CHANGE IN THE GAME. Hope you'll stay with me.


	5. Chapter 5

**That's Why I'm Here**

By LizD

Written June 2011

**Chapter Five**

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

Brennan sat in the OB/GYN's office with her hands folded over her swollen abdomen. Her left ring finger sported a shiny gold band. She twisted it in irritation of waiting so long.

Booth rushed in checking his watch. His left ring finger sported a matching band. His was not quite as shiny.

"Sorry, I'm late," he said hurriedly standing in front of her. "You weren't waiting for me where you?"

"Yes," she said annoyed.

"I got here as fast as I could," he protested taking the chair across from hers. "Do you know how many steps I skipped just to be here with you?"

"Don't do me any favors," she growled.

The older woman sitting away from them was watching their exchange. Booth shot her a smile.

"So what are we waiting for?" he asked.

The older woman spoke up. "I'm sorry that's my fault. Well, my granddaughter's. She was having some trouble." She lowered her voice to a whisper. "Spotting." She smiled at Brennan. "And your lovely wife allowed her to take her appointment."

Brennan scowled. "You were late."

Booth shot the older lady a look of 'help me.'

"You're about six months along?" The older woman asked.

"Seven," Booth offered grateful to have someone being nice to him.

"Thirty weeks." Brennan corrected.

"This isn't your first," the woman observed.

"Third," Booth said. "Hoping for a boy this time." He noticed Brennan scowl at him again. "But girls are nice."

A scream came from outside the offices.

"That's coming from Dr. Richardson's office." The older woman said.

"Dr. Richardson?"

"He's a proctologist."

A nurse ran in followed by a doctor and a man less than completely dressed. The man was clearly upset.

Booth shot up out of his chair and Brennan forced herself up from hers.

Booth took charge. "I'm a federal agent." He flashed his badge with lightening speed. "What seems to be the problem?"

"There's a finger in there ... at least I think it's a finger," the nurse pointed wildly out of the office.

"A finger?" Booth implored.

"It looks like a finger … well it looks like a finder of a skeleton only with meat on it."

Booth looked at Brennan. "Right up our alley, eh Bones?"

Brennan sighed and said, "Let me get my bag."

INSERT comments from producers from an interview about THE FINGER IN THE FISSURE - So after so many years of marriage (we don't need to be specific) and other births, Booth and Brennan are still together but are not in their honeymoon stage anymore because who would want to see that all GOOEY EYED DESSERT FEEDING. That's what FanFixion is for. Brennan is thinking that Booth doesn't love her anymore and Booth is thinking that she's thinking that he doesn't love her any more but he doesn't want to bring it up in case he's wrong. But no matter their marital discord, they are still Booth and Brennan, crime solvers. Tune in next week and we will see Booth and Brennan send their fourth child off to college only to discover a dead body in the dorm garage. The episode will be called "The Coed On The Moped."

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

**A/N:** WAIT! Third Baby? College? Wow, I think I skipped a few steps. Getting as bad as the real thing. But I suppose if I were that bad it would be six months between posts. (Bitter Pill, Anyone?) Sorry ... where were we? Right, Booth headed off to escort Broadsky. Without Further ado ...

**That's Why I'm Here**

By LizD

Written June 2011

**Chapter Five**

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x - x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

The universe conspired against the new lovers - or maybe it was just happenstance. The weekend with Parker didn't go as planned. He was injured during soccer practice on Thursday and broke his wrist. Brennan didn't mind but Booth claimed Rebecca insisted Parker stay home. If Brennan were an insecure person she might have thought that Rebecca had an issue with the new status of Booth's relationship with Brennan, but Brennan was not that kind of female. Booth didn't actually come out and tell Rebecca in any event, but it was pretty much understood when Booth suggested that Brennan pick Parker up on Saturday morning and that he would be 'home' Saturday night and 'they' would spend the weekend together. Parker thought it would be _cool _to spend Saturday with Dr. Bones. Rebecca thought it would be better for Parker to stay at home and he could go the following weekend. She was just being over protective - this was the first broken bone for her baby boy.

If Rebecca had an opinion about Booth and Brennan she kept it to herself. Rebecca was in the camp of _**Whatever**_ as concerns Booth and Brennan's relationship. She didn't understand Brennan at all, they would never be girlfriends, but she saw that Parker liked her and her influence over him was a good one. She got him to like school and science - any mother would appreciate that kind of influence over a child. Rebecca didn't believe that Booth hadn't bedded Brennan a long time ago; she knew enough about Booth's sexual appetites to be justified in that expectation. She admired the way they were still able to work together and be friends after all that time and whatever else was going on.

Booth going to Afghanistan was really hard for Rebecca to accept. She was scared for Booth; she was scared for Parker and she believed that Brennan going to Maluku helped Booth make his decision to go to Afghanistan - that was probably an impression that Booth had given her. Irrationally she would have held Brennan responsible if Booth had been injured or killed. The only good thing about the relationship with Brennan was that Rebecca firmly believed that Brennan was better for Booth than someone like Hannah. Rebecca and Hannah did not hit it off at all. Rebecca saw through sweet Hannah's smile in a second and saw that she was only with Booth for the good time - that she had no staying power. She also knew that Hannah would break Booth's heart, but she didn't entirely blame Hannah for that. Booth was just TOO TOO when it came to Hannah. He never fell in love that quickly or that completely. Something else had to have been a motivating factor. She blamed Booth for that; if she had known the real reason she might have placed the blame elsewhere. When she found out that Booth had proposed she nearly lost her noodle. He hadn't discussed it with her. He hadn't discussed Hannah moving in and that caused a huge fight that he ultimately agreed was something he should have mentioned to Rebecca before dropping Parker off. How could he possibly think that a proposal would be accepted any differently? When she confronted him about the proposal Booth didn't understand why it was Rebecca's concern and flatly told her to drop it as it was not accepted. Rebecca had a few choice words about Hannah on that score which Booth ultimately (read days later) he took as a compliment to him from her. Before the fight ended, Rebecca reminded him that everything about his personal life that affected Parker was her concern and a new wife for Booth was highest on the list. He should know that considering what a jerk he had been to every man in her life. She all but asked what happened with Brennan, but chose to keep that little question to herself. In the end Rebecca would have been happy to have Brennan replace Hannah. So Booth's suggestion that Brennan pick up Parker gave Rebecca a sneaking suspicion the world was righting itself for Booth.

The curse on the weekend didn't stop there. Saturday afternoon came, and Booth chose to stay in Kansas until Monday to meet with the JAG attorneys. He was very apologetic to Brennan, suggested that she fly out there to meet him since she wouldn't have Parker and was genuinely sorry for the situation. Brennan dismissed his apologies as not necessary but chose not to meet him. This was a little disturbing to Booth as he knew that she would start thinking and he didn't want her to start thinking her way into a change of heart. He called her often; too often for Brennan's tastes, with very little to say. In all the years they had been partners and friends there was never a shortage of conversation, now it was a little stilted.

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

The free time did give Brennan time to think but it wasn't all about Booth or what the change of their relationship meant though that was a large part of it. She thought a lot about life and death - Vincent's death to be specific and her mother's. She played the video her mother had sent her. It seemed full of regrets. Vincent was full of regrets; he didn't want to die. Brennan didn't want regrets. There were things she wanted in life; she had no idea how best to get them, but there were things she wanted.

Brennan met Angela for lunch on Sunday and they had a very nice discussion.

"So why didn't you go to Kansas with Booth?" Angela asked.

"I didn't want to," Brennan said easily.

"Sick of him already?" Angela joked.

"No," Brennan protested. "Why would you ask such a thing?"

"You seemed pretty casual the other night."

"Is that good?"

"You tell me, sweetie." She leaned in. "Did you take him home?"

Brennan nodded.

"And?"

"I'm not sure I know what answers you are seeking. Do you want me to disclose information about the sex?"

"So there was sex," Angela grinned.

"Yes."

"OK ... Sweetie, you have been in love with Booth for how long now?"

"I don't know ... I'm not sure how you define _**in love**_."

"When did you know that you wanted to be with him?"

"When did I know or when did I think it worth the risk?"

"Both."

"I have been in love - using your definition of the word - since we found my mother's remains."

"Sweetie, that was like seven years ago."

"There were complicating factors."

"Such as?"

"Booth. Booth and Rebecca. Booth and Cam. Booth and Hannah. Booth and the number of other women with whom he was sexually active. His statement that people - partners who work in high risk situations shouldn't be involved romantically. The fact that the FBI would split us up. Shall I go on?"

"NO ... no ... that's plenty." Angela shook her head. "So it was all Booth's fault?"

"No," Brennan protested again. "He wanted something different from what I had to offer. I felt that it would be unkind to enter into a relationship with him knowing that our desires were so different. And ..." Brennan looked down and then back up. "He didn't ask me."

"I don't buy that. He asked you when you first met."

"I asked him, but we didn't follow through."

"And then you told me he wanted to push your relationship to the next level before he went to Afghanistan. I assumed you turned him down."

Brennan nodded.

"Why? You can't blame that on Booth."

"No, that time it was me. We're not compatible. It would end and Booth would be hurt."

"And you wouldn't be, right." Sometimes Angela was annoyed at how selfless and selfish Brennan could be at the same time. "So why are you compatible now?"

"I don't know that we are," Brennan confessed. "But I have changed. He has changed. Maybe we changed in the same direction and we are still not compatible, or maybe we changed in opposite directions and now we are closer."

"And you're willing to risk it?"

"Yes."

"Risk hurting Booth? Risk hurting yourself?"

"Yes."

"What about working together in high risk situations?"

"Booth and I have been less than partners since we got back. He doesn't rely on me the way he used to - at least not in the field. That should take some of the onus off."

"What about the FBI splitting you up?"

"It's a real possibility in spite of Booth's assurance that they can't."

"He's willing to risk it?"

"I believe so."

Angela was frustrated with Brennan's lack of enthusiasm. "So why aren't you happier?"

"Am I supposed to be? Is this wrong?"

"Honey, stop asking if things are wrong. You are who you are. It isn't right or wrong. Do what you feel is best ... not what you think is best or what you think people are expecting of you. If you want to be with Booth, then be with him. Let him be with you. The rest of the world can go to hell."

"That isn't very practical. Booth and I do not live in a vacuum. We interact professionally as well as personally with a number of people who have expectations of us. First and foremost in Booth's life is Parker. And his job. His reputation."

"I'll grant you Parker, but not the other two. There is no reason why you can't be in his life right up there next to Parker."

"I would never ask him to choose."

"He knows that, Sweetie." Angela still felt that Brennan was holding back something important. "What is it, Sweetie?"

Brennan paused, considering if she should say what was on her mind to her friend considering her condition.

"You can tell me Sweetie. You know I love you."

Brennan smiled. "I know." She took a deep breath. "I want a baby."

Angela nearly choked on her iced tea. "What?"

"Two years ago, nearly three I decided that I wanted a baby and it didn't happen."

"That was really too bad," Angela said under her breath. If Booth and Brennan had had a baby three years ago, they probably would have been married and working on their second by now.

"I see what you are going through and I'm very envious."

"It will happen for you too, Sweetie."

"I'm getting close to the end of by childbearing years," Brennan acknowledged. "Booth has a son. He doesn't want another child."

"Do you know that for a fact?"

"No." She acknowledged. "But he was ready to get married a few months ago." Brennan didn't want to talk about Hannah but she was a fact that was hard to ignore. "Hannah didn't want children. She told me she told Booth. He proposed. He proposed to a woman who didn't want children. He had accepted that he wasn't going to have any more children. Maybe he doesn't want any more."

"Honey, are you really ready to start talking about having a baby with Booth? I mean I applaud your ability to move ahead, but shouldn't you two have a date first?"

"Given my feelings and his, will we just be wasting each other's time and preventing us from finding what we really want in life?"

"Sweetie, you want Booth. He wants you. Give it some time before you decide that you are not compatible and break up. There are so many good things coming your way with him. Just let the baby thing sit for a while, OK? Wait until it comes up in conversation. I know I just told you not to listen to anyone else about your relationship with Booth, but listen to me. Keep talking to him. Don't shut him out. And don't make decisions for him. OK?"

Brennan nodded. "I understand." Brennan had no intention of bringing it up with Booth and she hoped there would be time to discuss it rationally.

There was still something nagging at Brennan. She wanted to admit to Angela that for health reasons she had been off birth control since she had first discussed having a baby. Any sexual encounter she had in the interim she has used a condom and spermicide. She hadn't had many. However, the other night with Booth - the morning rather, they sort of skipped that part. The odds were ridiculous to think that she could get pregnant from one encounter. The worst part for Brennan was that she was ambivalent about telling Booth. It would open up a discussion that she didn't want to have just yet. She resolved to go back on birth control until it could be discussed dispassionately. She would make an appointment to see the doctor in the morning and start on the pill again.

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

Booth spent Sunday talking to the Dallas DA and Caroline from a Holiday Inn. By mid day he realized that it was a pretty stupid idea to stay to talk to the JAG Attorneys. He could have easily spoken to them on the phone on Monday from DC. Booth was not about to let Broadsky slip through the cracks in the system, but it appeared that he was not alone in the sentiment. He would have gotten a flight home to salvage something out of the weekend, but all the flights were booked.

An old Army buddy he knew from his first tour lived just outside of Kansas City. With time on his hands Booth drove down to have a beer with him.

Buck Kenny was about to get out fairly unscathed - never saw any action and was only _in country_ for six months. He was lucky until he was shipped home. His Humvee was hit with mortar fire and Kenny lost his leg from just above the knee and two fingers on his left hand (ring and pinky). He made a joke saying that he didn't want to get married anyway.

They met a bar and caught up on the past number of years since they had seen each other. When Kenny was done telling Booth about the ups and downs of life in Kansas City it was Booth's turn. He told him about Broadsky. Kenny never knew Broadsky but had heard about him by reputation. Booth proudly showed him pictures of Parker and skirted the mother question. Then he got to his FBI career and working with Brennan. Kenny of course was a Temperance Brennan fan but didn't realize that she was partners with Booth. That opened a whole topic. Kenny was dying to know if the Kathy in the books was anything like Temperance the author. Of course the sex in the books came up more than twice, Kenny assumed that Booth was used for research there too.

Booth became very uncomfortable. He never had in the past. Yes, he had read all of Brennan's books. Yes, her sex scenes were very vivid and nothing short of graphic. Yes, on more than one occasion he had imagined himself the fantasy inspiration and he enjoyed imaging himself in those scenes with Brennan. Yes, he had been teased incessantly by guys about his 'partnership' with Brennan - his hockey team was the worst. He had always protected Brennan's reputation and honor even if it meant that he was lowering his own in his boys' estimation. But it never affected him like it did right then with an old friend. If Kenny were talking this way about Brennan so were many other people and Booth didn't like it. He didn't like the idea of Brennan being a subject of fantasy for any other man. It was a totally ludicrous feeling. Firstly, Angela had been the impetus of most of the sex in Brennan's books. Secondly, Brennan was no shrinking violet. Thirdly, there was no way he could control what people thought even his friends. He was going to have to learn to deal with Brennan's celebrity and placate himself with the idea that he was the envy of other men. But he didn't need to take it from his friend.

"Kenny ... let me stop you right there," Booth said seriously. "Dr. Brennan and I have been partners for seven years. She is a really good friend and an amazing person. Truly unique. Special."

"But what? You aren't going to tell me that you never tapped that? You aren't going to give me that _just friends,_ bullshit. Worse - she's like a sister to you."

"No," he said considering what to say next. "No, I am not going to say that. But I would prefer you not talk about her ... like that."

"You aren't going to tell me that you're in love with her? Come on, Booth. I know you better than that. You're a free spirit. No woman is going to tie you down and surely not some egghead scientist no matter how hot she is."

Booth held his temper and controlled his tongue. "Kenny ... she's the one, man," he said seriously. "She's the one."

"Seriously? Come on, Booth. Seriously?"

"Yes," Booth said trying to not say too much. He wasn't sure where he and Brennan would end up; he was no longer convinced of the fifty year plan with any woman much less Brennan. But whatever would happen for them, it was big, it was important, and he wanted to give it the reverence it was due.

"Wow ... Big Booth settling down. I just assumed when you didn't marry your kid's mother ..." He held up his three fingered left hand. "I'm a confirmed bachelor."

Booth frowned and changed the subject. He remembered why he and Kenny weren't better friends. About twenty minutes later he was on his way back to his hotel with a mind full of Brennan and what was next. He thought about all the things that he had wanted in life - a home, someone with whom he could share his life, someone to grow old with, maybe another kid. He was freshly reminded that he and Brennan hadn't even had a chance to talk about how things would be different yet. There was no sense in thinking about the picket fence and the dog until they made it past a date, or a weekend away, or living together. Those things were all what was next, but not in any short order - well a date would be next and maybe a night spent together where he wasn't exhausted. Brennan didn't like change. She said as much. She was willing to change. She had made a lot of good strides, but they needed to take this next part nice and slow. They needed to savory every little change; explore each other and find the edges and push them a little bit at a time. Booth was in no hurry. They had taken the biggest step - hell it was a leap of faith - so at least they were on the right path - finally.

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

Sunday night Booth called her just to say good night.

"Hey," he said gently. "How was your day?"

"Fine," she said evenly. "We spoke three hours ago."

"I know. Just wanted to say good night."

"Did you see your friend?"

"I did. Good to catch up. He's a big fan, wants to know when your next book is coming out."

"July."

"July? I didn't know you had a book coming out in July."

"I started it in Maluku and finished it just before Christmas, but my editor had some major rewrites."

"Oh?" He wanted to ask, but she had never _**spoiled**_ her books for him in the past. It wasn't likely to change.

"Yes." Brennan didn't want to talk about her original draft. It included Andy Lister falling in love with someone else and the strain it caused in his relationship with Kathy. Her editor wanted it made clear that Andy wasn't in love with this new woman and had to have the relationship end long before the last chapter so that Andy and Kathy could get back together. Those notes came in last January when Brennan's heart wasn't into writing about Andy and Kathy but she finished it in late March and they pushed it through for a summer release. It was to be called **Bones of the Heart**. Brennan hated the title for obvious reasons but again her editor pushed it through.

"Are you going to let me read it?"

"Sure, when it comes out."

"I don't get a sneak peek?"

"Is it important to you?"

"Call it a benefit."

"Is that what we are?" she asked quickly. "Friends with Benefits?"

Booth nearly choked. "Where did you hear that?"

"Angela."

"About us?"

"Not specifically."

"No, Bones and I think you know that. Why would you ask something like that?"

"I don't want any more misunderstandings between us. I think it's important that we speak our minds."

"Haven't we always?"

"No," she said simply.

"Do you have something on your mind, Bones?"

She hesitated for a moment. Her conversation with Angela flashed through her mind. She opted not to bring up all that was on her mind over the phone with him so far away. "I find that I am very distracted."

"Distracted?"

"Yes. I can't concentrate. It took me two hours to finish a report that should have taken fifteen minutes."

He smiled. "Where is your mind wandering off to?"

"You."

"Me?"

"Yes, now that I have a more intimate knowledge of you ..."

"Oh yeah? You miss me, huh?"

"I would prefer that you were not in Kansas."

"Me too," he said. "I'll be back tomorrow." He paused. "Would you have dinner with me?"

Brennan wondered why a request for food was so formal. "Of course."

"Not the diner, Bones. And not Founding Fathers. Someplace nice. Some place ... romantic."

"I would like that very much."

"Me too." Finally Booth got around to asking her out on a date. Too bad it was a Monday night and they both had to work on Tuesday morning. But it was a start. "I need to get some sleep, Bones."

"As do I." She was reluctant to hang up. "I'll see you tomorrow."

"You will indeed." He was just about to hang up. "Hey, Bones, I love you."

"Yes," she said pausing. "I love you as well."

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x == x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

**A/N:** I have been very neglectful. I want to acknowledge a good SouthunLady for helping me talk through the ideas of this story and keeping me honest and laughing as we suffer through the Bones Fallout. Thank you, ma'am. I sincerely appreciate your input and feedback.

And Rankor01 for being my semi-technical advisor. I say semi because I'm sure there are still some blaring errors and don't want him to take the blame. Thank you, sir.


	6. Chapter 6

**That's Why I'm Here**

By LizD

Written June 2011

**Chapter Six**

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

Fate continued to conspire against the new lovers but they would not be defeated. Late Monday afternoon remains were found in a cabin in Virginia. Since Booth was out of town the case was given to Special Agent Carlo Marx. Brennan had never met him before and she took an instant dislike to him. He was young, loud, rude and insensitive. He knew that Brennan and the Jeffersonian team were elite and needed to be treated with respect, which he read as kid gloves. So in addition to his other faults, he was condescending and patronizing. Brennan wanted to squash him like a bug. She had to ride an hour and a half with him out to the cabin. She should have ridden with the rest of the crew in the van but she had to be first on the scene. Instead she pulled out her laptop and pretended to work. It was only pretend because Agent Marx never stopped talking.

"So you and Booth, huh?"

Brennan didn't respond.

"Heard Booth didn't do the partner thing and the Bureau let him get away with it because he was getting results with you and the eggheads at the Jeff. You're a specialized unit for bodies too decomped to get an ID."

"Yes, that is my area," she agreed. "I see you don't have a partner," Brennan observed.

"She's been benched," he explained. "Got herself knocked up and they won't let her go out into the field anymore." He paused to see if Brennan would respond. She didn't. "Just as well. She wasn't a real agent anyway; she was just looking for Mr. Agent Right so she could get married and eat bon-bons at home watching Oprah."

Brennan didn't respond not because she didn't have anything to say, but she could barely get a word in edgewise.

But by time they got to the crime scene Brennan had had enough. She blasted out of the car and up to the ranger to be led to the remains. Marx followed along like a big sloppy dog who never stopped barking. He was stepping in places he shouldn't be stepping, asking questions he shouldn't be asking and he was just about to pick up the skull ungloved when Brennan raised her voice to scold him.

"Agent Marx," she shouted. "Stop! If you do not know how to conduct yourself at a crime scene, you will have to wait in the car."

He smirked at her. "Will you crack the windows?"

"You are trampling evidence and contaminating the scene." She looked to the park ranger who was amused at the interplay. "Will you please control the perimeter?"

"He's your man."

"He is not," she corrected. "My partner is unavailable, this is a substitute. If needed, please physically remove Agent Marx to an appropriate distance."

Marx was about to protest but changed his mind.

There was no love lost between the park ranger and the FBI. He turned toward Marx and without removing his mirrored sunglasses said, "Happy to." He moved to push Marx back, but Marx stepped back and out of his way.

Thankfully the rest of the Jeffersonian crew showed up a short while later and they were able to take the samples that they needed, collect the evidence and order the body removed to the Jeffersonian all unmolested by Agent Marx. Brennan rode back in the van. Of course they didn't get a back to the lab until after seven.

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

Booth had called her three times while she was up at the cabin, but she was out of range so she didn't get the messages. She of course had left a message telling him that she was called out on a case. She did call him as soon as her phone had bars. He was still debriefing with Caroline, but would meet her at the lab and he'd bring Chinese. He decided that he would have to bring enough for the whole crew as not to start any rumors that they didn't want started.

Booth arrived at eight, but no one was on the platform. The lights were on but no one was home. Brennan's office was dark however as was Angela's and Cam's. He shifted the box full of Chinese to his other arm and checked his watch. They had gotten back forty-five minutes before. He checked his phone; there was a missed call from Brennan but no message. The call must have come in when he was paying for the food.

"Hello!" he called out. "Anyone here?"

There was no response. He climbed the stairs and put the food down on the table in the lounge.

"Hello?" he called a little louder. "Calling all squints! Come out! Come out! Where ever you are!"

Still nothing. He pulled out his phone and called Brennan. He heard her ringtone coming from her office. He walked in and saw it on her desk. Brennan always kept her phone with her. He didn't want to get concerned, but something was up.

"Hi," Brennan said from behind him.

Booth nearly jumped three feet. "Hey!" He flipped around. "What the hell, Bones?"

"I was in the bone room," she explained.

"Where is everyone?"

"Dinner. We have about an hour before the rest of the remains arrive. Apparently the cabin belongs to a senator so this has been given priority. Though I don't understand why who owns the cabin should matter." She stepped by him to get to her desk.

He smiled. "It just does, Bones."

"It's going to be a long night." She turned on her computer and shifted some files around on her desk. "Will you take this case from Agent Marx?"

"I was wondering how you and he were going to get along?"

"Not well." She gave her full attention to him. "I have told you repeatedly that you are the only FBI Agent I will work with. How they keep pushing other agents at us is inexcusable."

"I'll see what I can do. It being a senator's house will probably help with that. Marx is not what one would call tactful."

"I would call him rude, narcissist and a very poor agent."

Booth smiled. He could tell she was holding back for his sake. "So, I brought dinner. Of course I brought enough for the whole squint squad, so we have some eating to do."

She stopped what she was doing and really looked at him standing in her doorway as if he didn't want to intrude. For some reason he looked nervous and uncomfortable. It was true that he had been spending less of his time at the lab for the past number of months, but he shouldn't feel uncomfortable and he was never an intrusion - well typically not an intrusion. She smiled warmly at him. "I could eat," she said brightly.

"Good."

She stepped over to him, he waited. She leaned in and kissed him on the side of his mouth. She looked into his eyes as if asking if that were appropriate or acceptable. His arm came around her waist and held her close. He kissed her back more soundly showing that that was more appropriate. He turned her in his arm and led her over to the lounge. They took their normal positions and began dishing up the food. Conversation took a decidedly banal turn as they discussed Hop Li's over Wong Foo's. Wong Foo's had been closed for nearly six years, but it still held very fond memories. The quality of the food and the service from Sid was never matched.

"When I asked you to dinner, this is not what I had in mind, Bones." He nodded to her indicating for her to pass the fried rice.

"I know, but work is work." She reached over to grab the snow peas.

"It is. It is." He put an eggroll on her plate. "But we can't always be about work." If he got nothing else out of his relationship with Hannah, that was enough.

"It would be very easy to fall back into our old routine," she admitted taking a bite of moo shu.

"Yes, it would." He wiped his mouth and smiled. "Let's not do that."

She smiled at him with a lascivious grin. "What do you suggest?"

"Well," he gulped not expecting to be called on his remark quite so easily. "Nothing like the antics of Angela and Hodgins, but maybe we don't need to work so many hours. We can delegate more."

"You mean like tonight. Dr. Edison can take the initial information from the remains and clean the bones. I'll come in tomorrow morning when they are done. That is where I'm the most useful."

"You are always useful, Bones," he said warmly and stole a kiss. "But maybe you don't need to stay here all night every time we have a case."

"Stay late and come in early, but not all night."

"Something like that. Forensic anthropologists need their sleep too."

"I wasn't expecting to get much sleep in either case." She reached under the table and put her hand on his thigh and squeezed.

Booth jumped at her touch. He pulled his leg away, but leaned in to keep his voice low. "That might be a little too much here."

"I knew you were a prude," she grinned and turned back to her plate.

"I'm not a prude," he declared.

"Prudish," she offered.

"I just think that certain activities between two people should be done in private. It's no one else's business."

"There's no one here, Booth." She waved her chopsticks to the empty place.

He nodded and pointed with his chopsticks to the camera overhead. "There are always people watching."

"The doorway to my office?" she asked referring to the over the top kiss he had just given her.

"Out of range of the cameras."

She smiled. "You have an answer for everything."

"You like that about me."

"I like a lot of things about you," she said flatly - a line most women would have cooed and purred and turned into a double entendre. She turned back to her food. Her mind had flashed back on a conversation that had surprised her at the time and it related to the topic at hand. "You're not always such a prude - concerned with keeping activities between two people private." He didn't know what she meant. "The fig tree?"

"I knew that was going to come back and bite me in the ass," he sighed. "Didn't know where or when, but I knew it would." He put his chopsticks down and leaned back.

"I didn't know there was biting involved. That surprises me too. You don't seem the type who likes -"

"Bones," he said urgently to get her to stop talking. "I thought we wouldn't discuss our previous lovers."

"Do you miss her?" she asked ignoring his last comment.

He sighed. "Ya know what Bones, I don't. I haven't missed her since the day she left. Literally dropped her like a hot potato. Out of sight, out of mind. Is that what you want to hear?"

"I would prefer to hear the truth," she said honestly. "I'm not jealous, Booth," she protested. "I was never jealous." She felt she needed to correct herself. "I was envious."

"That's a subtle distinction that only you understand." He didn't want to talk about Hannah or the semantics of jealousy and envy.

"I didn't resent Hannah. I didn't wish her ill or fear that she had taken my place in your life. She was not a rival. It was not jealousy that I feel … felt" she corrected. "I envied her," Brennan paused to choose her words very carefully. "I envied her willingness to take a risk. I envied the love and attention she was willing to accept into her life. I regretted that I could have had that and was not brave enough to act on it. I envied the place she had in your -" Brennan stopped herself and looked down. There was no safe way to phrase that sentiment.

"So, it had nothing to do with me?" he asked before he could stop himself. "Totally in a vacuum you envied her?"

Brennan didn't answer.

He didn't want to push. He didn't want her to be jealous or envious of Hannah. Hannah was gone, what was to envy about that? "Bones, I really don't want to talk about Hannah or ... or envy." He took her hand. "And you have that place … you have always had that place."

She didn't like his _always_ comment. It meant that he still loved her when he was with Hannah, and that meant he could love Hannah and possibly other women when he was with her. Brennan didn't completely agree that humans were a monogamous species by nature, but it was something that she knew Booth lived by. Booth had stated once that he had never cheated on woman in his life, but his head could be turned. Very easily one relationship could end and another begin - as it just had. She wasn't looking for guarantees; she just wanted to be prepared. "Sweets would say that you not wanting to talk about Hannah meant that you have unresolved feelings for her."

She was right. Sweets had said that to him about Bones a time or ten. It was Sweets' go to line to get Booth to talk about stuff he didn't want to talk about; it didn't matter that he was right. "You hate psychology."

"I have come to appreciate that there is some merit to the study of people's motives and individual thought processes outside the group dynamic."

"How did this go from a discussion about sex in the workplace to me and unresolved feelings that I haven't admitted to having?" Brennan was about to step him through the stages of the conversation when he held up his hand. "Rhetorical question, Bones. I take it back." He leaned back. "If you really want to talk about this we can, but for me, I would rather forget the whole thing."

She put her chopsticks down and crossed her arms across her chest in a self protection mode. Booth had seen it a hundred times in suspects. "I would rather that there are no misunderstandings between us. Misunderstandings have some very negative effects." She definitely has something she needed to discuss with him and could be completely misunderstood if swept under the rug. "I would rather have everything out in the open. There's no reason to lie or ignore the gorilla in the room just to prolong the inevitable from occurring."

"It's an elephant Bones," he correct. "An elephant in the room. And what do you see as inevitable?"

"I don't know. I won't know until we are honest with each other."

"You know what else Sweets would say? He would say that when you are asking for something from someone else, it means you have something to give."

"He never said that. I'm pretty sure he never thought it."

"He should have. You want me to be honest, so I'm guessing that there is something you want to be honest with me about."

"There are some things on my mind that I would like to discuss." A wave of panic shot through her as she saw his eyes darken. "Is this wrong? Am I asking for something that is wrong? I don't know what is right."

"Bones, stop. There is no right or wrong. OK?" He studied her for a long moment. It had been a long few days and he just wanted to be easy with her for a while. "I _**honestly**_ would not like to talk about this … right now. I _**honestly**_ promise that we will find a time to talk about everything, OK? And I can _**honestly**_ tell you, being here with you right now is the only place I want to be, you are the only person I want to be with for now and the foreseeable future, and that is the God's honest truth. We have time. There is no need to rush anything."

She wasn't exactly disappointed but she wasn't overjoyed either. She was about to say that she understood and accepted his statement when the crew came in laughing and joking from dinner.

A round of "BOOTH!" came from all as they were happy to see him. There was more laughing and joking about how much food they had in front of them. Angela sat down and fixed a plate.

"Angie?" Hodgins asked.

"Hey … I can eat like this until this baby is born and then I am back on salads and water. Pass the cashew chicken."

Clark started picking at the shrimp and snow peas and Hodgins took up the rest of the fried rice. Cam was the only one who was starving but was watching her weight. She had a date on Saturday night that she needed to squeeze into an amazingly tight black dress.

The conversation turned to the case. The victim was female, eighteen to twenty-two. She had been out there between three and seven days. She had been wearing hiking gear and there was some evidence that she had been shot by a large caliber weapon, but until more tests were in that was unconfirmed.

"So we think a hiker took refuge in the cabin after being shot by a hunter?" Booth posited.

They all stared at him.

"Right. Right. No speculation. Sorry. Forgot." His phone rang before he had to crawl out of the hole he had just dug himself into. "Yes, sir." He stood up and moved away from the group so he could hear.

Angela stole a glance at Brennan and whispered her question. "Did we interrupt something?"

Brennan didn't respond but her face flushed enough to let Angela know it wasn't an innocent conversation so yes they did interrupt.

Angela helped to recover in front of all those people. "This is a lot of food for two people."

"He expected you all to be here," Brennan explained.

"Well that was nice," Hodgins said with a sly grin.

"You know Dr. Brennan," Clark said. "There is no reason you need to stay tonight. I'll be pretty busy gathering evidence, taking X-rays and cleaning the bones. They should be ready by morning. We could meet back here at say six?"

"No one is going anywhere," Booth announced. "The senator's daughter is missing. She was staying at the cabin for the weekend with three friends. None of them have been heard from. They were due back this morning. Who processed the scene at the cabin?"

"We all did," Cam stated.

"Where was Marx?" Booth pressed.

"In the car," Brennan stated.

"We cracked the windows," Hodgins added.

"So he got nothing. Didn't talk to the ranger, nothing. Did he even call the senator?"

No one could answer. "Well this case just became mine and it's now top priority." He looked at Brennan. "We need to go back out to that cabin - we'll be there by first light. Rangers and K-9 units will meet us up there. We're looking for three more girls. Angela I need an ID on that body ASAP. And we need to know if she was shot. Cam? Hodgins? Edison? Give me all you got."

Cam stood up and clapped her hands once. "OK kids, break time is over. Back to work."

Everyone dispersed. Brennan went to her office to get her lab coat. Booth followed.

"You OK?"

"Why wouldn't I be?"

"We were talking about some pretty big stuff and you didn't seem to be happy with where it ended."

"You said we would talk about it. I trust you."

"Good. You should."

"I do."

"Good." He hedged for a moment. "I've got to go back to my office. We are getting all we can on the senator's daughter and the other girls. I'll send everything we can get as soon as I get it."

"Ok."

"We're going to leave pretty early - Four AM."

"I'll be ready."

"You going to go home to get some sleep?"

"When I am done with what I can do here?"

"Should I meet you there?" he asked.

"You mean before four AM?"

"Yeah." Why he felt so out of his element was a mystery to him. He knew women. He knew how to date and woo women. He knew Brennan; had known her for years. This shouldn't be hard.

"Yes."

"You're sure?"

"I don't expect that there will be any sex -."

"Bones, shh." He looked out her door to be sure they weren't being over heard. "That's not -."

"It would be more practical if we left from the same location at that hour of the morning."

He smiled. He just loved her practical side. "Ok. I'll see you there. Around Eleven? Midnight?"

She nodded. "When we have done all we can do for the night."

He took her hand on the down low and pressed it. "Bones?"

"We are fine, Booth. You need to go. I have work to do."

"Ok." He glanced out the door one more time. No one was there. He turned back. Combed his fingers through her hair and kissed her. He pressed her hand one more time and slipped out.

She followed him with her eyes. Her frown slowly changed into a smile. "Ok," she said softly. Then she pulled on her lab coat and went to work.

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

**A/N:** They better get some sleep, 'cause I am thinking that this car ride is going to be a hum-dinger.


	7. Chapter 7

**That's Why I'm Here**

By LizD

Written June 2011

**Chapter Seven**

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

Brennan arrived home after midnight. When she drove into the lot passed Booth's vehicle she had a very nice sensation. She actually smiled in spite of her utter exhaustion. He was there at home waiting for her. How long had it been since someone was waiting at home for her? Over fifteen years at least, probably closer to twenty. She tried to logic her way out of feeling more than she should. His being there was a practical solution to a problem - not a problem really - a situation. It would have been just as logical had they still been just partners. But if they were just partners it wouldn't have been suggested or one of them would have been on the couch or in the spare bedroom. A wave of worry washed over her. What if he was in the spare room? What if this was just a practical solution to a situation and not anything more? Did it matter if it was? Would it make any difference? Yes, that would imply something. She shook the thoughts away. Angela had told her repeatedly that she shouldn't go looking trouble; she now understood what that meant. Booth was not the kind of man to say more than he felt, typically it was less to a fault. There was no reason to doubt him. She caught her reflection in her window as she closed and locked the door. She wasn't doubting him; she was doubting herself. She needed to stop that too.

She let herself into the apartment quietly. He had left some lights on for her. Booth's coat was over the back of the couch. There was a bag packed. It occurred to her that they might be staying in the mountains for more than the day. That would be awkward with the other FBI agents and rangers. But as she looked closer at the bag, it was just his work bag – laptop and such. Of course he wouldn't want to leave it in the SUV and maybe he did some work waiting for her to come home. In the kitchen there were some dishes in the drainer that she hadn't left and her garbage had been taken out. She found the thought of him making himself at home in her home very ... nice.

She found it interesting that he didn't call her after he left the lab. It wasn't necessary. There were a few business e-mails, but he would hardly be expected to put anything personal in a work email. They had a plan and each would do the best they could to follow it. Trust with no second guessing. She found that refreshing – not unexpected, but refreshing. Often in the past men would try to crowd her. She was independent and self-sufficient. She didn't like being crowded and she didn't need to be coddled. That had ended many relationships before they got started. It was a point for Booth that he knew her enough not to crowd.

She eased over to the couch. He was not there. She went down the hall to the guest room. Empty. She changed quietly in the bathroom and got ready for bed. She would be fine with three hours. She wouldn't be driving, but she wasn't going to sleep in the car and leave Booth to drive by himself. There was a lot to go over about the case.

The door to her bedroom was open. His form was outlined in the moonlight. It felt ... normal that he was there. It felt right. He seemed so peaceful. She didn't want to disturb him. She stood for a moment longer just watching him when his sleepy voice cut through the dark silence.

"Come to bed, Bones," he said gently.

She hesitated not because she didn't want to go to him; she was enjoying the sight of him in her bed.

"Bones?"

It was so natural and comfortable to him to be sleeping in her bed, she thought. This is how it should always have been. She crossed over to her side, how he knew it was her side was something she would ask him in the morning. She was sure he would have some detective reason for knowing. She slipped under the covers. He rolled over and enveloped her in his arms, kissed her temple and let his breathing go long and steady again. He was completely relaxed. She had never known him to be completely relaxed.

"Do you want know what we found out?" she whispered.

"Everything, but not now." He pulled her tightly against him and then loosened his hold. "Now is for sleep."

Brennan settled back into him and soon found that she was very comfortable in his arms, comfortable enough to fall asleep quickly. They were in the same position when the alarm went off at three-thirty. Booth was the first one up.

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

Booth had arrived the night before sometime before eleven. He had done all he could at the office, had delegated responsibilities to some of the other agents and gotten his marching orders from the higher ups. This was a no screw-up case. Marx has already failed. Booth went home to shower and change. He was still in his clothes from that morning in Kansas. His apartment was cold and dark, dusty and musty. It was going to need a big cleaning before the next time Parker or Brennan paid him a visit. Booth normally kept his place squared away; the benefits of Army training. The last time he had been there was the night, THEE night after Vincent's death; it seemed so long ago – a lifetime. Everything changed that day, that night, that morning following. He hadn't taken a breath long enough to think about it in any kind of context; he was just moving forward in true Booth fashion.

There was nothing wrong with that. Booth lived on instinct. His instinct told him that this new direction was the right one. He hadn't planned it. He didn't maneuver the situation to meet a desired end. He didn't wake up that morning and say, 'Today is the day that I'm no longer angry and will pursue a relationship with Bones.' That could be said for most of the decisions – the de facto decisions he made in his life and there were a lot of them. He never set a goal to be a sniper. He just kept following the process, doing his best and excelling at everything he tried. Eventually he found himself considered one of the top five snipers in the US Army at the time. He was probably still in the top ten. It wasn't his plan to work at the FBI either or use that job to balance the scales of his actions in the army, but it worked out that way. He found meaning and purpose as he went along. He didn't intend for Rebecca to get pregnant, to partner with Brennan or to meet Hannah. Those were all events that just happened in his life. He was the type to make the best of the situation he was in and make it work to his advantage - typically. There were the years when gambling took his attention, but they were short lived and behind him now. There was no use bemoaning the past or a future that was not open to him. He was a lot like Brennan in that he accepted reality pretty quickly and moved on with it - typically.

When he arrived at her apartment it was a little strange at first. He had spent the other night there, but that was only one night and she was there. Being alone in her place felt ... decadent. Booth wasn't a snooper in his personal life; he had enough of that in his work life, but he rarely got a chance to just take in her space without her being there. She had some fascinating art, some trinkets from countries that he couldn't pronounce and furniture that fit both form and function - something he was never able to accomplish with his overstuffed leather couch and now these seats from a stadium long ago destroyed. He felt comfortable enough after a little while to get himself a beer, forage for something in her fridge that he could eat and sit down at her table to get some more work done. He worked until eleven thirty; then he really needed to sleep. He cleaned up. Put all his stuff away so it would be ready in the morning and went to her room.

Everything smelled like her. It was the height of decadence to crawl between her crisp cotton sheets without her there. She was coming home soon. She was coming home to him. She would slide in next to him and they would sleep unmolested and safe from the outside world for a few hours at least. The first word that came to mind to describe his mood was happy - in spite of the work that had to be done. But what he was feeling was more like contentment. Not content like it was good enough, but content like he didn't want any more for now.

He wasn't sleeping an hour later, but he was shut down and resting. He heard her come in. He heard her change. He felt come to the doorway of the bedroom and pause. He was in too contented a space to want to disturb too much. He called to her and she came. They fit together like pieces of a puzzle. He slipped back is zone easily and fell into a deep restful slumber that due to the time, was more like a long powernap. He woke refreshed and prepared for the day. He reluctantly pulled away from her and went to dress giving her another ten minutes while he was in the bathroom.

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

Brennan didn't take the extra time. She was used to catching sleep in bits and pieces. She wouldn't have said she was refreshed and she was very disappointed when Booth slipped away from her, but she was ready for the work day. She got up and started the coffee and put some fruit, bread and cheese into a bag for the road. There wouldn't be time for a proper breakfast and it was anyone's guess as to when they would get lunch or dinner. As if they had been doing it for years, the dance they did getting ready was choreographed to perfection and all without words. Brennan took Booth's place in the bathroom. He dressed and finished with the coffee - two cups and a large thermos. She was dressed and they were on their way out the door by three fifty-five. They were not morning people – at least not four in the morning people, but they didn't need language just yet.

Before the door was opened and the world and work intruded, Booth caught her eye and smiled. It was a very mixed emotion. He would rather not be headed off to find three more dead girls (which was the mostly likely scenario), he would have preferred to sleep a few more hours particularly if she were there next to him, but to have her by his side and to have them so close took the edge off. Brennan returned the smile and the sentiment. She leaned into him as much as the bags over their shoulders would allow. With his free arm he pulled her close and kissed her.

"Morning," he said with his smile widening into a genuine grin.

"Yes, it is."

"You a grumpy girl?" he teased.

"There are at least two other activities I would rather be doing at this hour," she admitted.

"Heard that." He kissed her again. "Let's go, so we can get back and talk about what those activities might be."

She smiled. "Neither of them involved talking ... much."

"Even better." He stepped back and let her go out first and locked the door behind them. She had had her keys at the ready. She stuffed them into her bag feeling very attended to. It was nice. It was better than nice. It felt good.

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

The first twenty minutes was spent with Brennan catching Booth up on what they had discovered the night before and vice versa. The remains that were discovered were not of the Senator's daughter. There was a sixty-five percent probability it was the friend, Cee Cee Carroll. Until they got the dental records they could not state it definitively. She was shot by a 20 gauge shotgun from a distance of approximately six to eight feet but it was a glancing shot; she did not receive the full load. She would have lived approximately three hours after being shot before she bled out. She did not die where she was shot. Brennan had a whole host of other information about her. Booth retained the ones that were important – which is not to say he didn't listen to everything she said. She had been exposed to the elements for at least three days with no shelter. She was severely dehydrated. She had a hairline fracture of her right ankle and she had been favoring that side. Further she had a Colles fracture on her right arm. Brennan was sure that there was other damage, but would not be more specific until she was able to see the bones.

Booth countered back with the information that he received. Linda Monroe, Senator Monroe's daughter had just finished her freshman at the University of Virginia. She and three of her friends went up to the cabin a week ago Sunday, were to return the past Sunday afternoon or night, but have not been heard from. The Senator had called the Park Rangers to do a drive by of the cabin on Monday and that was when Cee Cee Carroll's remains were found. There was nothing else around to indicate that the girls had ever made it to the cabin. Linda's car had not been discovered. It was as if they disappeared on their way to the cabin.

The work portion of the program was done.

They were in comfortable silence for a short moment. Booth asked for more coffee from the thermos and she was happy to take care of it. There was at least another hour before they got to the cabin. Her mind had been full again of the things that she wanted to discuss with him so she decided that since they had time it was a good opportunity to get the conversation rolling. Given that there was limited time the conversation could not get too far away from her before they once again had to focus on work.

"Angela's very anxious for the baby to be born," she offered.

"I'll bet," he returned.

"They seem very happy in spite of the risk."

Booth shot her a look. He had heard about the twenty-five percent chance that the baby could be born blind. He and Hodgins had talked about it a little bit. "A baby is a miracle, Bones and worth the risk."

"You think so?"

"Yes, when the baby gets here – blind or not – they will love him or her and feel completely blessed."

"Is that how you felt with Parker?"

He nodded. "And still do every day."

"In spite of the trouble with Rebecca and not getting enough time with him?"

"Yes." Booth was a proud papa. He took another sip from his coffee.

Brennan felt comfortable enough to address her issue directly. "I want to have a baby," she blurted out.

"Whoa … Yeoow!" He spilled hot coffee on his lap. "Jeez Bones, you can't just come out with stuff like that or you'll be looking for another donor." He wiped at his lap.

"I don't want a donor, Booth" she said.

Her comment registered, but he would have to come back to it. There was a bigger issue to deal with. "Where did that come from?"

"I spoke to you nearly three years about having a child."

"Yes, yes you did." It felt like decades ago.

"As you know it didn't work out then but my desire to have a child has never gone away."

He nodded remembering the whole experience from the request, to the donation, to the hallucinations, to the tumor, to the dream. It was often fresh in his mind three years later and he had to actively push it away. "Still feels … I don't know … sudden. Out of the blue."

"Not really," she corrected. "Since we are now engaged in sexual relationship it's a topic that should be discussed in order to be responsible." She paused hoping he would say something but he was struck dumb. "I'm not suggesting that I want a baby now – or nine months from now. But I do want to have a baby and my child bearing years are rapidly decreasing."

"Ok?" He still didn't know how to respond. She wasn't really asking him a question.

She shot him a look. "If this relationship ... our relationship continues, is that something you would be amenable to? … Having a baby? … With me?"

He swallowed hard and stole several glances at her. "Yeah … sure … you know, sometime … someday … in the future... sure."

She seemed to be contented with that.

He wasn't but should have been. He ignored the voice in his head saying, 'Warning, can of worms ahead.' "Where did that come from?" he asked.

"I mentioned to you a week or so ago that once Angela's baby is born, I would be the only one without a child."

"Ok." He was waiting for the connection.

"You commented that once I saw Angela's baby that I would become pregnant because of a hormonal imbalance. That's not how it works."

"I'm aware of that and that's not quite what I said," he corrected but he really couldn't remember what he said or what he was thinking. "But why bring it up now if you aren't ready now?"

She studied him for a moment. She knew there would be resistance to her reasoning. She turned to look out the windshield. "Because you asked Hannah to marry you," she said flatly.

"AAAAAAAAAAAANT." He bleated like a buzzer on a game show. "Gonna have to get a ruling from the judges on that one." He shook his head trying to make light of it. "What does one have to do with another?"

"Hannah told me that she didn't want children. I'm sure she told you the same thing."

"So?"

"So you were prepared to marry and spend the rest of your life with someone who didn't want children."

Booth leapt ahead to the next part. "And by extension you thought I didn't want children," he concluded for her.

"I want to be honest, Booth."

"Back to the honesty thing, are we?"

"Yes." This conversation was not going the way she had planned. "If you are not interested in having children then our relationship is fated to end. And ..."

"And what? We should quit before we even get started?" She didn't answer but that was exactly what she was thinking; rather quit before any damage gets done. Booth scrambled for something to say. "I thought you didn't need a man to have a baby ... outside of the donation, of course."

"I said that, yes," she agreed. "And I felt that way at the time."

"But you don't anymore?"

"No," she said. "I've changed."

He snorted a laugh. "You can say that again."

"Did you not hear me? I've changed my opinion on the matter." He waved her off. "I bring this up now because it will have a bearing on our future. I wouldn't want there to be any misunderstandings like you had with Hannah."

"Enough with Hannah, Bones."

She felt scolded but continued to make her point. "I'm not looking for a donor, Booth." She shot him a look. "Not just a donor. I would like the biological father to be involved - with me and the child."

He ran a hand through his hair. "Wow, for a woman who hates change you're doing a complete one-eighty."

She paused for a moment. "I'm not suggesting that we have a child immediately."

"Well that's good," he said almost laughing. "Don't want to hire a sitter for our first date."

She didn't understand him. "In the interest of our future relations, whatever they might be, I want to be upfront so we don't have any misunderstandings between us." She left the last part implied. That she didn't want him to walk away from her when some misunderstanding between the came to light - like say a marriage proposal that was rejected because one of the parties had no intention of marrying.

Booth knew where she was coming from. Brennan has been the one who suffered the most from his 'misunderstanding' with Hannah; that is most after him and maybe Hannah, of course. But Brennan put herself in the way of that fall out. It was her choice to stand by him and take his anger that was often directed outward and since she was the only one standing there, she got it in spades. Further, to a certain degree she suffered from their misunderstanding two years ago, but she was no innocent victim in that scenario either. It took several months and a great deal of reflection - something Booth wasn't very good at - for Booth had to admit that in both cases he pushed an agenda of his and left no room for compromise - less so in Brennan's case. The words he said to Brennan that night - _I need to move on_ - plagued him and pretty much painted him into a corner particularly after she posited the Maluku scheme. Move on. Bah. What a joke in light of recent events; the joke was on him.

"Alright," he relented. "I get it. No misunderstandings ... as much as anyone can agree to that." He reached over and took her hand. "Relationships are about compromise, Bones. We'll get there." He pressed her hand and smiled warmly at her. "Step by step, we will get there." He hoped that would be the end of it. How 'bout those Phillies, anyone?

She returned the smile but wasn't in agreement with his compromise statement. They were silent for a while as she considered what she wanted to say.

"I need you to explain something to me," she said after a long moment. She went on without waiting for the go ahead. "Compromise is a settlement of differences by mutual concessions. A concession is a point or position yielded."

"I know what _compromise_ and _concession_ mean, Bones," he grumbled in that way he does when he feels that she is talking down to him. "What's your point?"

"You say relationships are about compromise. What was the _mutual concession_ Hannah made for you to yield your desire to have a child?"

Booth was floored. She was using some twisted super squint logic. She probably didn't know what point she was arguing.

"Or was it not a compromise? Are you ambivalent about having another child and will allow your indecisiveness to be swayed?" She paused, waiting for him to speak, but he didn't. Another idea struck her. "Or were you hoping that she would change her mind? Are you expecting that I will change mine - now that you have seen that I'm amenable to change?"

The conversation was spinning out of control. Booth pulled over to the side of the road, threw the vehicle in park and got out. She got out too. He walked a little way away and held his hand up indicating he did not want her to follow him. He turned and looked at her with his hands on his hips; clearly he was forming his rebuttal but to what. She waited.

He took a deep breath in and then let it out. This was going to be his life with her - he knew that. Brennan was not being any different than she always had been using logic and reason to work her way through any situation even situations that had little logic or reason about them. This was what he loved about her, he reminded himself. The fact that she was different from any other woman he had ever known and he liked that was freshly remembered. Most of the issues he had in relationships were when either the female or he got an idea in their head about the other and started making decisions based upon that interpretation.

"Is this wrong?" she asked. "Am I doing something wrong?"

"No ... no ... not at all." He smiled and shook his head. "It's just a little different having this kind of discussion at the beginning."

"We are hardly at the beginning, Booth. We have known each other for almost eight years. You know more about me than anyone else and I suspect I can say the same about you ... in most areas."

He nodded and his smile lit of his eyes. "In every way that counts, Bones." His smile faded. "That should get me a little trust then, don't you agree?"

She nodded by she didn't fully agree. "Up until two years ago I would have agreed with that one hundred percent. But as concerns a personal ... romantic ... sexual relationship between us, I believe that trust will need to be earned and tested for each of us."

"Really?"

"Yes." She swallowed hard. "I tend to remove myself when situations become too emotional. You have experienced that often in the past eight years starting with the fallout of our very first case."

He nodded. "Your flight response is very honed."

"Upon returning from Maluku I vowed not to do that anymore."

Booth was dying to ask why she didn't contact him in those seven months, but felt that that conversation would take them in a whole other direction. "And you have stuck by me with no regard for the injuries you were suffering even when I all but told you to go away."

She nodded and was grateful that he had acknowledged that. "You, on the other hand, tend to let things fester in your mind when you are making a decision. When you finally do speak there is no compromise or discussion. All or nothing."

That was a little unfair. He had to qualify that her remark. "In our case, I would not have chosen to go to Afghanistan if you did not go to Maluku." He paused. "And we would have remained partners, at your request."

"But you would have moved on," she pressed.

"It would have been more difficult to do that seeing you every day, but yes I would have. Given that you typically don't change your mind, I would have had to."

"I understand and appreciate my contribution to these last two years. I truly wished for your happiness and believed that you had found that with Hannah. I was happy for you."

His looked soften. "I know you were. It meant a great deal to me even if I didn't show that appropriately at times"

She paused and swallowed hard. "I loved you, Booth." He stepped toward her. "I loved you that night ... you know ... the night after Sweets -."

"I know the night."

"I loved you then and for a long time before that." She paused to control her emotions. "I truly meant what I said about protecting you. I knew you wanted more from a woman ... from me. More than I felt that I was capable of giving ... at the time. I'm still not sure I have all that you are seeking." Her eyes filled with tears. "I never wanted to hurt you. I know I did and for that I'm truly sorry it was never my intention. I have tried to be the best friend you could have hoped for."

He stepped toward her again. "You are, Bones. Don't -."

She stepped back. She didn't want to be comforted ... yet. "I will not remove myself, Booth." She glanced away briefly. "I will not run away from you or form this anymore or from situations that are extremely emotional that I don't know how to manage." She looked down again. "That is the most I can promise and be certain that I will not fail."

He smiled. "That's enough for me, Bones." He too needed to promise something. "I will not let things fester. I'll be open with my ... fee - with what I am thinking and not make assumptions about what you are thinking?"

"If we were more communicative, that would be enough."

"With everything else we have going for us that will be all that we need." He closed the distance between them and wrapped her up in an embrace. She was not going to be an easy lover, but she was going to be worth it. He pushed her back, smoothed her bangs to the side and kissed her.

She held on to him for a long moment grateful for the safety of his embrace and the sound of his beating heart. She was not exactly sure what was resolved on, but it felt like enough for the morning. "We need to get back on the road."

He laughed. "We do ... how about we play a different game on the rest of the way."

"Different game?"

"Yeah ... how about the alphabet game. Do the alphabet in the license plates we pass."

"Booth we haven't passed another vehicle since we got on this road."

"So it will be a slow game." He led her back to the SUV and opened her door for her. He walked around the front feeling closer to her but not like anything had been resolved. A baby, huh? I little Bones baby and Booth daddy. Nice. Really nice. In a year or two. He had always wanted another chance to have a kid and he promised himself that if he ever did, he would do it the right way - marriage first, no surprises. The right way.

He pulled the vehicle back on the road and tried to make up some of the time they had lost. Something occurred to him. The first time they were together, there was no protection used. The second time it was a condom. Was she on some kind of birth control? He stole a look at her. She smiled back. Should he ask? What were the odds that she wasn't? She was an adult responsible woman, not some dumb kid in the back of a VW Beetle. Didn't matter anyway. What were the odds that it would happen the very first time? He stole another look at her. He considered their open communication agreement that was not three minutes old. He tabled it until they had more time.

"How about a banana, Bones?"

"Sure."

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

**A/N:** Happy Fourth of July Everyone!


	8. Chapter 8

**That's Why I'm Here**

By LizD

Written July 2011

**Chapter Eight**

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

The remainder of the drive had been on a lighter topic. They talked of Parker and how he was doing it school, soccer, baseball and what his plans were for that summer. Interestingly enough it included two weeks at a science camp. Booth felt that it was Brennan's influence; Brennan suggested that it was his own inquisitive mind. To that end, she suggested that the camp group take a field trip to the Jeffersonian and the medico-legal lab. A fleeting thought passed through Booth's mind that she was only suggesting the visit as a way to get in good with Parker and what better way than to have him look like a big man with his friends, but he had to believe she would have offered irrespective of their change in status. The second part was the truth.

Booth and Brennan arrived at the cabin just after the K-9 unit arrived; the park ranger had been there for a while. The K-9 unit consisted of three officers and their dogs. They were a search and rescue unit out of DC and had been specially tasked for this assignment because of the senator's connection. Almost immediately after getting out of the vehicles the dogs had a scent of something. Booth decided to trek with them leaving Brennan with the park ranger to wait for the FBI CSU team. John Hancock, the ranger, seemed very pleased to see Dr. Brennan again. Booth noticed Hancock noticing Brennan. He didn't like it. He didn't say anything, but he didn't like it.

"Didn't expect to see you up here again so soon, Dr. Brennan," he said once the K-9 units had departed.

Brennan didn't respond; there wasn't anything to respond to. He hadn't asked a question, he was merely making a statement about his expectations. Brennan set to work reviewing the cabin for anything she might have missed and then expanded her search to the outside. Her concern was that Cee Cee Clancy had been shot elsewhere and made it back to the cabin to die. There should have been a blood trail. She searched around the outside of the cabin but much of it had been contaminated; more than contaminated it looked like it had been swept up. She expanded her search and found blood off the south west side; the opposite direction that the K-9 units and Booth had gone. She continued to follow the trail. Hancock followed after her still trying to engage her in conversation; she continued to ignore him. The blood trail ended at the edge of a very steep drop off. There was some evidence that someone had gone over but all the way down was tree lined and the bottom couldn't be seen. Brennan suggested that Hancock get back to the cabin and direct the FBI CSU unit to that location. He was reluctant to leave her alone, but she assured him that she would be fine.

Hancock left. Brennan continued to investigate the scene, taking samples and marking finds. She discovered another blood trail leading back into the woods. She had also seen animal tracks - bear tracks to be precise. She had decided to wait until the CSU agents showed up until she heard something that sounded like a low moan or groan coming from up head through a stand of trees. She advanced toward the sound. As she grew closer she realized that the sound was not human, it was animal. Unfortunately it was too late. She stepped into a clearing and just before her was a black bear. She had startled him and he growled loudly. Brennan could see that the bear was injured and assumed that he was more dangerous. She was about to step away slowly hoping not to excite the bear when he reared up. From behind her came a loud crack and the bear fell to the ground with a thud. She turned around to find Ranger John Hancock with his rifle to his shoulder.

"Can't just go wandering off, Dr. Brennan," he said with an air of bravado about him.

Brennan was unimpressed with his marksmanship. She rarely saw the need to kill an animal except for food and she had given up eating animal flesh years before. "I thought as a ranger you would use a tranquilizer gun."

"Couldn't take the chance."

"He was injured," Brennan explained.

"He was a she and now she's dead. I saved your life."

Brennan didn't agree but wasn't about to debate him. She went to inspect the animal. The bear had suffered a gunshot wound prior to the fatal shot. It looked like it was from a shotgun - like Cee Cee Clancy, but until she got the animal back to the lab she wouldn't be certain it was the same type of weapon. She felt her phone ring in her pocket, but when she answered it the call didn't connect. They were too high in the mountains - no service. She barked at Hancock to have the bear sent back to the Jeffersonian. Hancock would not normally like such bossy and demanding women, but he made an exception in Brennan's case.

A moment or two later, Booth came flying through the thicket with his weapon drawn. He saw her and immediately lowered it. He glanced toward the ranger and back to Brennan. She nodded to the bear.

"She was injured," Brennan explained. "Possibly by the same type of weapon used on Cee Cee Clancy. I found a blood trail, but now I can't be certain if it was human or animal blood. I'll need to take it back to the lab. Further it looks as if someone when over the cliff."

"It is more of an embankment," Hancock corrected.

"Whatever." Booth holstered his weapon eyeing the ranger. He was less than impressed. "We found something too." Booth stepped back to lead Brennan away. "Bones, you want the bear back at the Jeffersonian, right?" She nodded. Booth turned to Ranger Hancock. "Wait here for CSU so they can find the location."

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

Brennan followed Booth back passed the cabin up the hill.

"Ranger Hancock likes you," he said when he was sure they were out of earshot.

Yes was all she said.

"So?" he pressed.

"So where are you taking me?" she asked. "What did you find?"

"We found a cave just up ahead." He nodded down the path. "Not pretty, gonna let you sort it out."

Brennan didn't like the sound of that.

"So Ranger John Hancock?"

She stopped and looked at him waiting for him to turn around. "Booth, you have always had a tendency to be over protective of me when we have dealt with men who show the lightest interest in me sexually. In the past I wrote it off to your alpha male tendencies and a desire to demonstrate to whomever we are dealing that you are in control of the situation."

"And the fact that they were usually suspects or witnesses - sometimes the murderer himself."

"Yes." She hated being reminded of that. "I have not commented on it in the past because I felt it was a partner thing. That you were just watching my back, as I have watched yours."

"And?"

"But now that our situation has changed, I must tell you that if you chose to continue to act that way, it might be construed as jealousy and that demonstrates your lack of trust in me."

"I'm not jealous," he protested.

"I am a public figure. I've been on television. There are websites dedicated to my fiction and me - some contain some very personal information that I have not released. My picture is on the back of every book. I have a fan base. Men find me attractive. Women find me attractive. By all measures of this society I'm an attractive woman. You find me attractive."

"Of course."

"People think they know me," she went on. "And speak to me more personally than our culture would dictate. I suggest that you find a way ignore other people reacting to me."

"Fine." He studied her for a moment. "And you?"

"And me what?"

"You get to enjoy this attention from the masses?"

"In the past - yes I did occasionally enjoy sexual attention from someone but as I suspect you would find it offensive I will of course do nothing to encourage it in the future. In general, I find fawning fans and cloying men very annoying." She pointed over his shoulder. "Hancock just killed an animal to prove something to me. That animal did not need to die. She was injured and could have been saved," she protested very passionately and clearly not enjoying this little tête-à-tête.

"Ok ... Ok ... I'm sorry."

She headed back up the trail. "You're an attractive man - very attractive," she said over her shoulder.

"Thank you?" He wasn't sure where she was going with that.

"Women are drawn to you - many women; and you enjoy their attention and often encourage it."

"Excuse me?" He found her statement to be very provocative. He touched her arm to get her to stop walking. "When do I encourage it?"

"I suspect that you have no intention of bedding these women, but you do encourage their attention to turn the interaction to your advantage."

"Name three," he protested.

"That woman at the coffee cart," Brennan stated as her first example. "The agent in your office who does your filing. My neighbor, Ms. Adams. Shall I go on?"

"No. No. You made your point." He pulled her close. "Are you jealous?"

"Are you planning on having sex with any of those women?"

"NO," he protested a little too loudly.

"Then I have no reason to be."

She was logic personified – sometimes to a fault. "How about as a partner I can still watch your back and keep those men off of you?"

"I can take care of myself," she protested as she nestled into his embrace.

"Yes you can; one of the things that I find most attractive about you." He kissed her quickly. "But when you're with me, you shouldn't have to."

"Very chivalrous."

He smiled. "And you thought chivalry was dead."

"Booth, how can a noun b-." He stopped her with a kiss before she could ask her very literal question about a very dumb joke. The kissing to stop her was going to be much better than trying to explain anything Booth decided and much more fun for him.

"Agent Booth? Agent Booth!" A K-9 officer came into view at that moment. Booth stepped back and his face reddened. The officer didn't appear to notice but Brennan did. "Agent Booth ... we found a third victim."

Booth was back to work. He directed Brennan up the path and into a cave. A set of remains was scattered around the open space as if scavenged by animals. With only a quick review, Brennan knew that there were parts missing.

"We are going to need more than CSU up here," she said quietly. "We'll need the whole Jeffersonian crew."

"Where's the third victim?" Booth asked.

"You're not going to believe this," the agent said leading them back out of the cave. He led them a short distance away where the other two officers and the dogs were waiting. The dogs were staring up into the tree.

Booth and Brennan looked up. On a branch about twenty-five feet off the ground was the third victim. She was scavenged by insects and birds.

Booth looked back at the K-9 officers. "You think she climbed that tree and couldn't get down?"

"We don't speculate, sir," the youngest one said proudly. "We just find them. If we tried to think like they think, we'd never find them."

"We're still looking for a fourth victim," Brennan said. "She may have gone over the cliff off the south west of the cabin."

"This has all the earmarks of what happens when people who don't know a thing about the wilderness run into a hungry bear," said Hancock. How he had snuck up on them was a little spooky for Booth. That was one more tick in the con column for Park Ranger Hancock.

"CSU is here," he announced.

"Half of them should start up here," said Brennan.

"Hancock, could you show the S&R team where you think someone might have gone over?"

He nodded reluctantly and led the men and dogs away.

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

The rest of the day was pretty hectic. The fourth victim was found at the bottom of that drop off. All victims were female, ages eighteen to twenty-five. Cause of death for the one in the cave was yet undetermined. The body found in the tree had been shot with a handgun and the one at the bottom of the crevasse suffered blunt force trauma to head but it had yet to be determined if it was as the result of the fall. Brennan was reluctant to speculate but Booth pressed, she suggested that they had all died five to seven days ago. Once the Jeffersonian team showed up, Booth left to do the interviews with the families. She would catch a ride back to town with them when all the evidence had been collected.

By the next morning less than twenty-four hours later Brennan and the squint squad had made the following discoveries:

Cee Cee Clancy - found in the cabin. Cause of death was blood loss due to injuries suffered from a 20 gauge shotgun blast from about seven feet away. After being shot (location still unknown) she made her way to the cabin and died there. Her death was the most recent based upon insect activity and estimated at five days prior to her body being discovered.

Linda Monroe - majority of remains found in the cave. Cause of death was blunt force trauma to the parietal from the butt of a weapon consistent with a 20 gauge shotgun. Until the weapon was found, that was only speculation. She would have died instantly. Time of death was estimated at six days - or Sunday.

Sandra Shilling - remains found in the tree. Cause of death was a gunshot wound to the chest from a .45. She was shot while she was up in the tree. Time of death was also six days - or Sunday.

Hailey Marcum - remains found at the bottom of an embankment. The drop was thirty feet. Cause of death was also a gunshot wound from a .45 in the back. Time of death was also six days - or Sunday.

Brennan's report to Booth was much more detailed and precise, but he paraphrased in his mind as she spoke.

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

Booth's day wasn't quite as productive. He discovered that the girls were roommates at the university and didn't know each other before meeting at school. They were solid B students. Linda and Hailey had boyfriends, but the boys' alibis checked out. They had left on Friday night from Linda's house in Linda's car. The last time anyone of their credit cards was used was at a small gas station about thirty miles from the cabin. They purchased gas, some snack foods and a twelve pack of beer. None of them were of age to drink in Virginia. The clerk at the gas station remembered the girls and remembered selling them the beer. He did not check their IDs. He had nothing else to report. There was no video footage to use from the store.

Booth's biggest issue at the moment was that their car was still missing as was all their gear. He had a BOLO on the car, but it was six days later; the car could be anywhere. Booth's working theory was that they had run into someone they shouldn't have on their way to the cabin. There was no evidence that they had made it inside the cabin, but there were too many other possibilities to speculate further. They could have had car trouble. They could have picked up a hitchhiker. Maybe it wasn't random. He too many lines of inquiry still out there. Until there was more to go on, he was dead in the water.

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

Brennan had worked all night catching only a few hours sleep just before dawn. Booth had spent the night at home. He checked in with her and offered to bring food, or to take her to the diner for a late supper as they had only arrived back from the cabin at eight, but she had refused. She was in total work mode and nothing would deter her.

At seven in the morning, Booth was at the lab with coffee. Brennan was finishing up a report that she was about to send him.

"You should go home," he said placing the coffee on her desk.

"I will as soon as I'm done with this."

"The rest of the squints?" he asked looking out into the lab.

"They left about an hour ago. We're all coming back around two."

"Not sure there is more that you can tell me that will help," he said.

"You don't know that. Hodgins has a lot of dirt to go through."

Booth smiled wondering how a tired and cranky Hodgins would react to her use of the term 'dirt.' "I missed you last night," he offered gently.

"Missed me?" she was focused on her report and didn't really understand that he was trying to say something sweet.

"All alone ... in my bed ... without you ... first time I slept at home since ..." He let it drop out there for her to fill in the last time they were at his apartment and in his bed. It felt like a very long time ago.

Brennan remembered. She was gradually remembering that morning having less to do with Vincent's death and more to do with the two of them, but it was not easy to separate the two. She had worried that it was a casual occurrence particularly after he had to go to Kansas but the way he was treating her was anything but casual; in fact he seemed to accept this new status with no need for discussion. It was clear that he was happy with the direction the relationship had taken and enjoyed making references to their sexual encounters - past and future. Brennan was not offended in anyway, but she still felt tentative around him – as least physically particularly when they were in public. His coloring when the S&R office came across them etc.

"Maybe when this case is over," he suggested. "We can have that dinner … just you and me … well rested and out on the town for a little R&R."

"I like the sound of that," she said before she yawned.

"OK, Bones … time for you to come home and get as much uninterrupted sleep as you can." He pulled her up to standing.

"My car is at my apartment," she said a little coyly. "I'll need to call a cab."

He smiled. This was Brennan's attempt at playing with him. "Special Agent Seeley Booth, at your service, ma'am. Allow me to escort you home and tuck you into bed."

She leaned against him forcing him to put his arms around her. "I need sleep, Booth."

"On my honor," he kissed her head.

"I don't need to be back until two this afternoon," she offered. "A couple of hours is all I need," she smiled up at him.

He turned her toward the door and escorted her out. "How about I give you a wake-up call around noon."

"Only if it is in person." She yawned again.

"That can definitely be arranged.

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

**A/N:** Sorry, kind of a filler ep, but it was a busy weekend. More soon. Happy Belated Independence Day!


	9. Chapter 9

**That's Why I'm Here**

By LizD

Written July 2011

**Chapter Nine**

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

Booth took Brennan home. As she got ready for bed he pulled the curtains, turned off the phones, adjusted the air conditioning and put some water on her night stand. In all the years he had known her, of all the mornings after he had witnessed, this was the first time he was allowed to take care of her. In the past he was only allowed to bring her coffee or take her to breakfast, but there was more care he wanted to give. She deserved to be taken care of her particularly because she put so much of herself into her work and neglected her own basic needs. Brennan never thought twice about working all night. From the day he met her and now eight years later she would still get so focused on the job that time was irrelevant; sleep, food and water were irrelevant. It was one of her characteristics that drew her to him in the beginning and every day since – her dedication, not her ability to survive without sustenance. She was quieter when she was exhausted but he didn't need her to chat him up. That morning, he literally tucked her in bed, kissed her tenderly and whispered for her to sleep and that he would be back in time to wake her to get back to the Jeffersonian.

He knew her well enough to know that she would typically be awake before she needed to be anxious that she would be late but that was before. Maybe this time she could just relax and put her faith in him to take care of her and get her where she needed to be on time. As much as he wanted to crawl in bed next to her and hold her as she slept; he wouldn't. His innuendo about the wake-up call being more than just a call was not serious; at least it wouldn't be that day. He wouldn't come back until after one; time enough for her to take a shower and get back to the lab. They had plenty of time to be together in that other way and frankly he was really longing for the opportunity to do it right - romantic dinner, a walk along the water and an uninterrupted night with no commitments the following day. Sure, they could stuff their romance in between dead bodies and murderers, but he wanted their relationship to be less about opportunity and more about them outside of work. It was going to take some effort and there would be more interferences but he made a promise to himself that he would not let circumstances take control.

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

Brennan heard the door softly close as Booth left her room and then she heard the door to her apartment close and lock behind him. It made her sad to hear him go. There was such a sense of safety when he was around. There was a part of her that thought he might stay with her in bed or in the apartment watching over her, but there was work to be done. Besides, if he did stay, even in another room she wouldn't have been able to sleep well. She needed quiet and solitude when she was that exhausted.

She snuggled back into the pillows and pulled up the blanket feeling very attended to. It was a very singular and wonderful feeling. She was happy. Brennan told her mind to rest. But as it slowed down to allow herself to sleep, she was overwhelmed with grief. It flooded her quickly and with little warning; she was swept away. She broke down into tears and sobbed into her pillow. So much was affecting her. That night she discovered some reports that Vincent Nigel Murray hadn't finished. They were actually done, but he always took special care to be more than thorough before he turned anything into to her. His loss was such a waste; so tragic to have such a promising career, to have such a lovely man's life cut short for no reason. Vincent was an innocent; had done no harm to anyone. Even his apologies for his drunken exploits were minor in the possible offenses in the world; but his apologies where genuine. How was it that her life was just opening up and his was cut so drastically short? She was flooded again by the senselessness of it all. She had been working on the remains of four women who died before their life had begun. There was no reason for it – at least none that would be acceptable. They were young, beautiful, just starting out. They had so much more to experience. Sandra Shilling was on crew - a rower in the crew team; Brennan saw it in her bones. Linda Monroe had fallen when she was eight or nine, probably from a horse; she was an equestrian - of jumpers that she could tell in her bones. Hailey Marcum spent too much time at a computer; Brennan discovered that she was a computer science major after she saw it in her bones. Cee Cee Clancy was a dancer - at least she had been a dancer before she became a teenager. She would have had arthritis if she lived - but she should have lived. She should have been able to grow up, grow old, fall in love, have children and watch them grow up and have children of their own. But they were gone – these four beautiful girls with their whole life ahead of them were dead. It wasn't random, it wasn't bad luck. It was circumstance. Had they chosen to go to the cabin the following week would they have died? If they had chosen to go to the beach instead of the mountains would they have been murdered so brutally? Whatever she and Booth discovered about who killed them and why it didn't matter. It shouldn't have happened. They shouldn't be dead. Vincent Nigel Murray shouldn't be dead. How can she be so happy about how her life was turning around? Those deaths didn't have anything to do with her happiness, but that wasn't how it felt for at least one of those deaths.

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

Booth arrived back at the apartment around one. She was already up and in the shower. She had woken up at twelve-thirty and was again overwhelmed with grief. Instead of allowing herself to sob uncontrollably into her pillow and chancing that Booth would walk in on her, she allowed the hot water to wash away her tears. She didn't want Booth to find her crying - again. He waited in the kitchen for her and was sorry her missed waking her up.

"Hi," she said with a tiny voice.

He turned to see that she was still hot and wet from the shower, with a towel around her neck and her robe tied loosely around her. She was beautiful but sad. "Hi," he said back. "Did you sleep well?"

She shook her head slightly. "I slept."

He nodded to the coffee he had gotten for her and the container of fruit he picked up as well. "They found the car," he said thinking that it might be best to stick with the case for a bit.

She came over and joined him. "Where?"

"Tucson, Arizona," he explained. "It was abandoned might have been a day or two. We are getting closer, Bones." She didn't respond. "I have them pulling evidence out of it; but will have it shipped to the Jeffersonian for final analysis."

She looked up at him with tired red eyes. "Will you have to go out there?"

His heart ached for her. She was such a little girl sometimes that he wanted to protect her from the world and the pain in it. He never wanted to be the one to give her more pain. Getting her to accept his protection and find safety with him would still be something they had to work on together. "No," he said reaching his hand out to her. "I'll coordinate with the Phoenix field office." She took his hand and he pulled her to him. "Do you really have to go in at two?"

She nodded and started to pull away from him but it was too nice to be held by him. "Yes. But it won't be a late night." She looked back at her container of fruit that was all nicely cut up. Clearly he had gone to the diner to get it for her. She just wished she were hungry. She really did appreciate it. "We need to catch this guy, Booth."

"We will." He rubbed his hand down her back. "We always do. We're the best, baby." He flashed his trademarked charmed smile.

She smiled weakly at his use of the term _**baby**_. She knew about the generic terms of endearment that men typically used. She was not a fan. But Booth had called her Bones and that was a term of endearment atypical and just between them. She had grown to like that. "I'll go get dressed."

He released her and watched her retreat down the hall. She could have just been tired, but he knew her better than that. She was affected. There were cases that really got to her and this was one of them. Frankly it was bothering him too. The more he learned about the girls, the more he liked them. They weren't into drugs, or drinking. The plan was to go to the cabin and hike and make smores in the fireplace and watch chic movies on a laptop. Their big nod to being reckless was a twelve pack of light beer between the four of them. It was a girl's weekend and some son of a bitch took that away from them. He took more than the weekend; he took their lives. Booth would find that guy and stop him from ever doing it to anyone else; a little too late for Cee Cee, Hailey, Linda and Sandra, but it was the most he could do for them.

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

Back at work more results were in. Hodgins was amazing with what he was finding. To call them needles in haystacks wouldn't be enough. He was finding specific grains of sand on a beach. Amid the mess at the cabin, Hodgins had found a foot print near the edge of the embankment that more than likely belonged to the killer. They were not on the path and there was blood from Linda Monroe in the print. From those foot prints he was able to determine that the owner of them was male, one hundred and ninety pounds, and had been in the Virginia area but had come down from New York. Booth tried to follow Hodgins' logic but he was talking too fast and spouting of particulates like he was reading a recipe. Angela was able to determine that the boot that made the foot prints was from a Harley Davidson boot; specifically the Broker boot that was fairly new or at least not long worn. Typically the boot was only bought online so she was running a search for the past two years. Booth didn't want know how she was doing that, so he let it go. Cam had discovered that the girls had been dosed with something like acid but it only showed in trace amounts. The only way she could account for it was if they all shared a dose. That disturbed Booth as there were no reports that these girls were into drugs at all. She also reported that it appeared as if Hailey Marcum (the one who was shot in the back) had been sexually assaulted. Clark Edison reported finding that the Cee Cee (the one found in the cabin) had no bone markers to indicate she put up a defense but the other girls did.

A picture was coming clear for Booth. This Harley Davidson boot wearing guy somehow met up with these girls, charmed his way into their car. He drugged them, tried to take advantage of them, when things got out of hand and the girls fought back he killed them all and took off in their car. Booth could never be really sure unless he found Boot Boy and he confessed. In the end the chain of events didn't matter, Boot Boy was going down.

Booth heard back from the Phoenix field office. A shotgun was found in the trunk of the car; it was registered to Senator Monroe. The senator had forgotten to mention that the cabin had a shotgun. The girls' packs we also found in the trunk. Their wallets had been rifled through but it looked like only cash was taken. They were able to lift a print from the car. It belonged to a Scott Angel of New York City. Booth had his records pulled. Angel had a record with multiple counts of assault, robbery, statutory rape, narcotics and illegal possession of fire arms. There was no record that he ever owned a motorcycle of any kind so he was probably not in a gang. It was also discovered that a car belonging to Angel had been abandoned just over the Virginia boarder about three days before the girls went missing. It hadn't been reported earlier as it was parked in a parking lot so it didn't draw attention for a while.

Booth was sure that Scott Angel was their guy, but he needed to find evidence that placed him at the scene with the girls. Hogins' stuff was good, but not good enough. The substance they were dosed with needed to be analyzed and it needed to tie to Angel. He also wanted the weapon used; the .45 to run ballistics. He told Cam to go back and do everything she could to pull some DNA off the girls. It was a ridiculous attempt. They had been out there too long and most of the parts that would have DNA on them were eaten away.

As for hot to find Angel, Booth told them to run every missing person's from the Tucson area in the past several days. He also said they should plaster his face all over the news. They needed as many eyes looking for this guy as possible.

They all had their jobs to do. They all set to work.

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

By ten that night, there was not much more to be done. Angel was still not located but they were following several good leads. There was a guy that Angel was in prison with living in Nogales. An old girl friend lived in Indio, California. An aunt lived in Colorado.

Booth was still at the office when Brennan called.

"Hi Booth," she said like it was just another work related call. "We are done for the night."

"Yeah, there is not much more to be done. Thanks, Bones."

"Of course."

There was a bit of a stiff silence.

"Did you eat?" he asked.

"Yes," she had picked at some pizza that was ordered in. "Did you?"

"I grabbed a sandwich." Of course three quarters of it was left in the package when he threw it away. He finished the chips though.

Another stiff silence.

"I hope I can sleep tonight," she said but worried that it was not phrased correctly.

"You've been burning it pretty hard for the last couple of days." He wanted to ask if he could join her, but he thought she might be suggesting that they spend the night apart. "I'm pretty tired too."

"Burning it?"

"Never mind." He didn't know how to say good night. They would have to figure it out sometime. He didn't want to slam this relationship into overdrive, rent a u-haul and move in together, but on the other hand he didn't want to have it be too casual just yet. Not until they had their first date.

"I'm not physically or mentally up for having sex tonight," she said.

Leave it to Brennan to make the awkward situation a little cleared but a lot more awkward.

"Of course." He had his answer. He was sleeping alone that night.

"What time will you be done?"

"I'm packing it up right now."

"Ok."

"Ok, well then … Good night, Bones." He couldn't keep the disappointment out of his voice. He didn't want to sound that way. He couldn't help it.

"Good night?" she asked.

"Yes. You said you wanted to sleep and not ... you know."

Brennan was a little tentative about the whole scenario too. She had never been in a relationship where she would want to literally sleep with a man she was sexually active with if there were no anticipation of sex before or after. On the other hand, who knew how she would feel in the morning.

"Does that mean you won't be coming over tonight?" she asked. Maybe Booth wasn't interested in just sleeping. "Or that you don't want me to come to you?"

"I'm confused," he said.

"I'm out of my comfort zone Booth, so if I am wrong, please tell me. I sleep better when you are with me – at least I have in our limited experience - but if you need to have se-."

"No," he stopped her. "No, I don't. I thought you wanted to be alone."

"If I wanted to be alone I would have told you." She wondered. "Do you want to be alone?"

"No," he said earnestly.

"Good."

He couldn't help smiling. "My place or yours?"

"I have food and scotch at my house," she offered.

"I'm on my way," he laughed. "I'll see you in fifteen?"

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

Booth and Brennan sat on the couch each with a glass of scotch in their hands. Booth had his arm around her and she had her head resting in the crook of his shoulder. They were staring at the fireplace that had no fire in it. It was too hot for a fire. They had been quiet and just relaxing with each other for a while. Booth had brought a bag with him so he was in sweats. Brennan was likewise. It was a true picture of domestic tranquility.

"I'll clean out a drawer or two for you and some of the closet," she said quietly.

He smiled and kissed the top of her head. He had brought a fresh suit and shirt with him for the following day and hung it on the door to her bedroom. It wasn't as awkward as is sounded.

"I don't think either one of us should give up our apartments just yet though," she added.

"Oh no?" He hadn't planned on it, but he wondered why she wasn't planning on it.

"I'm assuming there will be nights when we will want to be alone."

"Occasionally," he agreed. "But not tonight."

"No," she said. "Not tonight."

He wanted to ask her about earlier. He wanted to know if she had been upset or crying. In the past it was enough that that she knew he knew and he gave her the space she needed, but now he felt like he needed to do more than know. He needed to acknowledge it somehow. He wasn't trying to be her hero or to take her pain away; but it was important that she knew that she wasn't alone anymore.

"Bones, you know if you are upset you can talk to me."

She had no idea where that came from. "Why would I be upset?"

"Today when I picked you up … you looked like you had been crying."

She stiffened a little in his arm.

"Bones, my shoulder is always there for you … or if you want to talk or rant or scream and yell. I'm here for you."

She heard him and she even believed him to a degree though why should would want to scream or yell was foreign. But how Booth being _**there**_ for her would change her actions was unclear.

"The other night … last week … after Vincent … that was a very hard day … but don't for one minute think that that's why we are here right now. Vincent's death was tragic. We turned to each other, but I loved you for a long time before that. This is real."

"I know."

"You are the advocate of open communication," he pushed.

"If anything that concerns you is on my mind, I will tell you."

"Bones, if it concerns you, if something upsets you, if you are unhappy in anyway, I'd like to help even if it is just to give you a shoulder, a hug and to tell you that I love you." He leaned away from her. "And I do, you know."

She nodded. "This part will take some getting used to. I have been alone for a very long time - over twenty years."

"You trust me?"

"It's not about trust … it's about … I don't know what it's about. I rarely talk about things that upset me. I rarely let things upset me. Just acknowledging those … those … those things is hard enough for me. But I'm getting better," she protested.

"I know." He was quiet for a moment. "Can I remind you occasionally that you can count on me?"

"I know I can, Booth."

"Can I remind you anyway?"

She didn't see the point in it but agreed.

"Sometimes the world just sucks, Bones. People die who had every reason to live. We see a lot of that in our work. All we can do is to get justice for them and to not waste our lives mourning their loss, but that doesn't mean that we can't feel sad or angry, we just can't let it consume us. We have both seen a lot of death – we will see more – it's what we do."

"I know," she turned into him and wrapped her arms around his waist. "We do what we can … we make those bastards pay," she said with a bit of a smile to a time long ago forgotten. "Let's go to bed." She sat up and drained her glass. He did likewise and hand in hand they retired to bed.

The lights went out, the folded into each other's ready embrace. The room was still. Brennan's mind wandered back to earlier that day and her sadness. She didn't feel like crying again. "I'm very glad you're here," she whispered in the dark. "I'm glad you're not angry and that you love me."

"Me too."

"I like knowing that you are next to me and will be when I wake up. I like knowing that I can talk to you or not talk to you and we are OK."

"Me too," he said. "That's why I'm here."

She leaned up on her elbow and looked down into his face in the shadows. She was going to say something but she was not sure what. Instead she kissed him. He kissed her back. It wasn't going to be just sleep that night, but that was OK too.

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

At six AM Booth's phone rang.

"Booth … Where? … Where?" He was silent for a long while. "Fine. We'll be there as soon as we can. … Yes, I'm bringing my partner, Dr. Temperance Brennan of the Jeffersonian Institution. … She's amazing. Block off the crime scene?"

He sat up and wiped his hands across his face.

"They found Scott Angel in Los Angeles … well outside Los Angeles … the desert near Indio. There's another victim. They found her out at Joshua Tree but they can't link Scott to her murder. Looks like we are going to the desert."

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

**A/N: **More Action coming ... but these are the scenes that we will never get to see on the real show. We see plenty of investigations. We OK?


	10. Chapter 10

**That's Why I'm Here**

By LizD

Written July 2011

**Chapter Ten**

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

They were back, baby!

Booth and Brennan were back - only better!

Almost literally overnight they fell back into the routine of partners now that the cloud that had hung over them was dissipated. Once again they were easy with each other like they were two or three years ago before they started slipping down that slippery slope from which they almost didn't recover. Booth looked at her, talked to her, listened to her as he used to. He joked with her and played with her. He felt free to touch her in a platonic, 'she's my partner' kind of way. Brennan too was back to her old self but better. Her tentativeness was gone and the ease with which she complimented Booth was a complete turnaround from a few days ago. It was undoubtedly had a lot to do with the task at hand. They were working as partners again, not Booth in the field and Brennan in the lab, but as partners, together, in sync, working the evidence, looking for the truth, eeking out the modicum of justice that could be found for the poor victims. Booth was convinced that Scott Angel was their man, but he kept an open mind. As always Brennan was convinced that the evidence would stand on its own and reveal the murderer but would not leap to conclusions.

From the moment the decision was made that they were going through the first hour of the flight they were in full work mode and it felt good. They discussed the evidence and they talked through the history of Scott Angel. Booth posited many scenarios and Brennan itemized the evidence they had and would need to find to prove any or all of them. It felt good. It felt better than good. They had years of history between them and now they had a new closeness which enhanced that history.

Booth took the window and slept for most of the flight. Brennan worked on some reports and then on her next book - an idea had come to her and she wanted to get some stuff down so she wouldn't forget. That's what she was working on when Booth woke up and looked over at her monitor. It was a mess of an outline. It was probably supposed to be a version of a murder board but it was very hard to follow. He reviewed the screen without letting her know that he was awake. He had several questions but would start with a comment.

"How can you get a cohesive story out of that mess?" he asked with a light playful tone. "Do all your books start this way?"

She would normally shut her laptop after a comment like that – she hated criticism on a work in process - but this time from him she was OK with it. In fact she was gratified that he was interested.

"I normally work from index cards, post-it notes and a glass board," she said. "But I couldn't fit it in my carry-on bag."

Booth looked over at her and smiled. "You made a joke ... and it was funny."

She shook her head and went back to work but a smile not edged her lips.

"Will you let me consult on this one as you're working on it?"

"Consult?"

"Yeah." He shifted his position slightly and turned the screen toward him a little bit more. "I have a little bit of experience with this kind of thing." He shot her a playful glance. "So what is this one about?"

"It involves the death of an FBI agent who was killed in his sleep," she said flatly.

"Oooh, snap," he joked and sat up. "Another joke or did someone get up on the wrong side of the special agent this morning?"

"I slept on my usual side." She turned the laptop back toward her.

"Look Bones, if I snore or hog all the covers, I'll do better. You don't need to kill me ... or even fantasize about killing me."

"My ... fantasies as concern you are not about death and murder." She shot him a glace quickly. "They are much more enjoyable."

"So you fantasize about me, huh?"

"Yes." There was a lot more she had to say on the subject, but chose to keep reveal little at that point.

He was intrigued by her comment and when they were alone he would question her more about her fantasies. He made a mental note. He leaned back and rang for the attendant. When she came he asked for coffee. The attendant looked at Brennan who shook her head to indicate that she didn't want anything. The attendant smiled broadly at Booth and left. Brennan noticed his return smile and went back to work.

"What?" he asked.

"Nothing," she denied. They had had this discussion recently. It was Booth's way to be charming to women. She could deal with it. It didn't mean anything. On the other hand, she had been on the receiving end of that charmed smile more than once and look at them now. She had always liked that about Booth; that he was so charming.

"Come on Bones, let me be your technical advisor on this one ... you don't need to give me credit or anything."

"Credit?"

"Yeah ... and maybe this time you won't need Angela for the juicy parts."

"I never needed Angela, but she is a good collaborator and she knows people."

"I can be a good collaborator," he said playfully. "And I know people."

She finally looked over at him; she couldn't hide her smile. "Yes, you can and yes, you do."

"So?"

She nodded slightly. "Let me get this mapped out in my mind and on paper and we'll talk about it."

"Talk about it?" He wondered if they were going to talk about him consulting or talk about the book.

"You can ... consult."

Booth grinned. "Nice … one point for my side."

"Are we keeping score?"

"Nope." He stretched. "But I'm winning. How long until we land?"

"Thirty minutes."

"First class is nice." He looked around. "I can get used to this." He leaned very close to her and whispered in her ear. "I bet there are a lot of things I'm going to enjoy getting used to."

"Agreed."

He looked down at a note she was making describing of the state of the remains. "Bones ... yuck! Seriously, how do you come up with this stuff?"

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

Booth and Brennan deplaned at the Palm Springs Airport at two PM Pacific time. It was a small - smallish - airport; only twenty gates all on one level. Both had been in smaller airports, both had been to airstrips with no gate at all. It was a welcome change from Dulles and LAX with the throngs of people and tight security; which was not to imply that Palm Springs Airport was not secure there was just less to secure. They were lead through a security check point directly from the gate to wait in a holding room. They were both anxious to get to work. Booth was on the phone with the FBI and Brennan was webcasting with Clark Edison, Angela, Hodgins and Cam. There wasn't much new to report but once the car and the samples of Scott Angel's DNA arrived they could start running their comparisons.

"SEELEY BOOTH! Well I'll be a son-of-a-bitch!"

Booth and Brennan turned to see who was there. He was a younger man, younger than Booth by about five or six years. He was big, blonde, blue eyed and very pale considering he was in southern California. Booth couldn't place his name but clearly this guy knew him. The man came over to shake Booth's hand vigorously and he clapped him on the shoulder a little more roughly than Booth's generally liked. The big man turned his attention to Brennan.

"And this vision must be Dr. Temperance Brennan," he took her hand in both of his and shook it warmly. "Not sure how Seeley wound up with a partner of your caliber." He leaned in and lowered his voice. "Booth here barely made it through the forensic science class at the academy."

Booth finally realized who this larger than life man was. He went through the academy with him years ago and didn't like him much back then. He was loud, rude and too familiar. "Bones, this is Jan Svendsen."

"People call me Sven," he corrected releasing Brennan's hand. "Bones, huh?"

"People call me Dr. Brennan," she said evenly.

"Dr. Brennan it is," he agreed but was a little put off. "So Seeley ... how's it hanging, huh? Heard about the big take down with Broadsky - too bad you didn't put a bullet in him where it counted. Thought you were some crack shot, huh? Must have been having an off day."

"You're working out of Los Angeles, these days?" Booth was freshly reminded of all the reasons why he didn't like Sven. "The last I heard you were in Denver."

"That was years ago. Been here in L.A. for the past three. When I heard you were coming, I took the case from Waterson."

"Great ... well, we better get started." Booth stepped back to let Sven lead the way.

"You bet," he agreed leading them out. "We've got about an hour out to Joshua Tree."

"Where's Angel?"

"In jail … cooling his heels … we've got him on a carrying a concealed weapon so he's not going anywhere, anytime soon."

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

The car ride was nearly unbearable for Booth. Brennan sat in the back and was able to ignore much of the conversation even though a lot of it was for her benefit from Sven's point of view. He talked non-stop about the people they knew at the academy and Sven had some little anecdote about Booth concerning each person it usually involved drinking and a woman or two.

"Booth was quite a dog in his day," Sven reached across and slapped him on the shoulder. "And by the looks of him I'd say he isn't about to change that any time soon. No one's gonna put her hooks into you, eh Seeley ol' boy. You're too smart for that. Look at you man … you look like you're in better shape now than you were at the academy; bet you got the ladies lining up for tickets. You still running?"

"When I have time." Booth wanted to shut Sven up. It was true that when Booth was younger, when he was in the academy and knew Sven he was a bit of a womanizer – more like serial monogamy. The women he would meet would last a few months, six weeks or the span of a weekend. And he did like to hoist a few with friends after work and he did like the company of women, but he didn't need to be reminded of that time nor did he think Brennan needed that kind of information. He hoped that she had tuned Sven out. The truth was Brennan was listening to every word but was able to work and listen at the same time. Sven's comments gave her a bad impression of Sven and had no bearing on her feelings about Booth.

"Right time … how's that kid of yours? How old is he now? Ten, Eleven?"

"Parker is eleven."

"And the mother? You never made and honest woman of her, huh?"

At this Brennan spoke. "Honest? How is Booth responsible for Parker's mother's state of honesty?"

"He should have married her," Sven said a little confused. He was not used to Brennan's literal nature.

Booth wanted to stop this discussion because there was no telling what would come out of Brennan's mouth. She could defend him by saying that he asked and was refused - Booth didn't really want that out there either.

"Bones -."

"From your question," Brennan said ignoring Booth. "You are implying that Rebecca is not honest because she was unmarried at the time of her son's conception and birth. The institution of marriage is hardly yard stick for honesty. It's an archaic notion. How is an agreement between two people to raise a child any more valid if it is sanctioned by the state? What does honesty have to do with marriage and children? The divorce rate is fifty percent in the United States and fifty percent of those were due to infidelity - a lie between two people. There are thirteen million single parent households in the United States alone. Many women in their twenties, thirties and forties are deciding to have a child on their own foregoing the need for a husband and opting just for a donor only. Four out of every ten births are to unmarried women. Are all of these women dishonest?"

"What I mean -." Sven tried to defend himself but he had stepped into it with Brennan and there was no way out.

"Not too long ago, I considered having a child on my own and if it had worked out, I would have been no less honest than I am today." She paused. "I am very honest."

Sven was stunned. He was scolded and he knew it but didn't quite know how to respond. Booth didn't say anything he was loving Brennan putting Sven back on his heels.

"How long have you two been partners?" Sven asked desperately trying to change the subject.

"My partnership with Booth has little to do with this conversation," she stated. "But I agree that a chance of topic is needed. Why don't you tell us what you have found at the crime scene and why you believe Mr. Angel was involved in this murder?"

Then came the second part of Booth's nightmare. The remainder of the drive was spent discussing the case. Brennan was relentless with Sven about the assumptions he was making, conclusions he was drawing. In the end all that they were able to glean was that the CSU team had reported that the victim was between twenty-five and thirty, female and the ID found with the body indicates that she was from Tucson Arizona and owned the car found in Angel's possession. She had been dead for more than a few hours and that was it.

"Of course the victim has been dead for more than a few hours. It took us five hours to fly here," she stated with an annoyance level off the charts. "Are you certain that the ID belongs to the remains?"

Booth turned and shot her a look and a smile. "That's why you're here, Bones." He probably should have been embarrassed by her harshness to a fellow agent, but Sven was a bit of a dolt and needed to be taken down a peg or two. "How long until we get there?" Booth asked.

"Ten minutes," Sven said hoping that there was nothing to prevent them from getting there in ten minutes.

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

They arrived at the crime scene at quarter to four - none too soon for Sven. His gregariousness had been squashed. He was silent for the rest of the drive. It was a lonely stretch of highway that no one would have noticed a dead body. It was luck that a truck had broken down not a hundred yards from where her body had been dumped. Brennan was out of the vehicle first and grabbed her bag. Sven caught Booth by the front of the SUV.

"How long have you two been partners?"

"On and off - but for most of eight years."

"Really? Is she like that all the time?"

"Like what? Literal? Opinionated? Vocal?" Booth smiled. "Every day since I've known her," he said proudly.

Sven looked at her walking away. "Man she better be good ... to have to put up with that crap day in and day out -."

Booth shoved him back into the SUV and got very close to him. "She's my partner. Show some respect." He started to walk away but turned back to glare at Sven. "For the record ... she is amazing. It would do you good to shut your mouth, watch, listen and learn."

Sven was still not impressed. "Come on Booth ... you must be tapping that or you would never put up with -."

Booth shoved him again back into the SUV harder this time. "I won't tell you again. Respect! I can get you transferred to Anchorage, understand?"

Sven held up his hands in surrender. He didn't believe that Booth could do any such thing, but he had heard that Brennan was the darling of the department - a bit of an odd duck, but she got results so the FBI gave her leeway to get the job done. As Booth walked away, Sven shook his head. Sven touched a sore spot alright but it was pretty clear, they were more than partners.

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

Brennan was crouching over the remains when Booth joined her notebook in hand. The CSU team was standing back per Brennan's request. It actually was a request this time, not a demand. She was in a pretty good mood. She had also gotten the cursory information from the unit before she started her examination and was impressed with their findings.

"What've you got, Bones?"

"Female. Twenty-five to thirty. She has given birth in the two years. She's been dead for at least two days not more than a week. Hodgins will give us a better timeline based on insect activity. Given the temperature and the scavenging a field examination is an estimate at best."

"Cause of death?" Booth said as he wrote.

"Not willing to say at the moment ... but she was shot ... entry wound consistent with a .45." She pointed to a wound above the left breast. It was more than likely the kill show, but Brennan was not about to make snap decisions until all the facts were in.

"Anything else?"

"Yes, she was restrained - ankles and wrists with duct tape." She pointed to the tape around the ankles. "There is some residue around the mouth that is consistent with glue or tape. Hodgins will be able to identify that for us. I'm sure there is more, but -."

"You need to get her back to the Jeffersonian. On it." He snapped his notebook closed. "Is that it?"

Brennan stood up. "We didn't fly out here for me to look at the remains and send them back to the Jeffersonian."

"What? The desert's not hot enough for you?"

"Booth."

"We are here to talk to Scott Angel. And you need to collect DNA from him before we decide to transfer him back to Washington." He stepped toward her and lowered his voice. "We are here because we are partners working this case … the case of a senator's daughter who was killed. I know you hate the politics, but appreciate the need for justice. At least five women have been killed, possibly by this man – Scott Angel – it is our job to either find the evidence that convicts him or the evidence that points to someone else. Either way we have to solve this case, yes?"

"Yes." Brennan nodded to the CSU team allowing them to process, collect and remove the remains. She would supervise and assist. Booth watched and continued to make notes.

Booth and Brennan started back toward the car later. Sven was standing near it talking to a sheriff's officer.

"I don't like your friend," Brennan said.

"First, he is not my friend and second, he doesn't like you much either." Booth stopped their progress to the car with a touch to her forearm. "About what he was saying -."

"Booth."

"About what he was saying," he repeated. "He knew me a long time ago."

"He was acquainted with you a long time ago," she corrected. "He never knew you from what I could determine." She kept walking.

"Right." As he followed her he wondered if he was too forceful with Sven. He wanted to knock him out but knew that Brennan didn't need her honor defended and he didn't want to cause a scene that would put their partnership and new status in a bad light or any light at all for that matter.

"Hey," Sven said. "Sheriff's Deputy Dawes is going to take you down to Indio. That's where we're holding Angel. They have a vehicle down there for you as well."

"Good. Thanks." Booth said turning his attention to Dawes. Hands were shaken and introductions made.

"Angel has lawyered up," Deputy Dawes said. "And won't talk until he gets there. That should be in the morning. You can try to talk to him, but I wouldn't expect much tonight. And he won't submit to a DNA sample being taken until his lawyer has arrived."

"Don't we have a court order?" Brennan asked.

"We can wait until morning," Booth suggested. "He's not going anywhere. We are not going to let this guy walk on a technicality."

Brennan was a little annoyed. If they were going to interrogate Angel, she would have preferred to have been at the lab and working the remains. There was no need for her to have flown all the way to California.

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

Angel refused to speak with them and they had done all they could there. Booth had found out more about the possible victim. Her name was Penny Lange. She had been missing from her home in Tucson for five days. She was a bank teller and had a two year old son named Matthew. Her husband was consulting in Afghanistan. Before the remains were sent to the Jeffersonian, Brennan examined them again in the coroner's office with the information they had gotten for Ms. Lange. By the end of the examination Brennan was comfortable saying that there was a seventy-five percent probability that those remains were that of Penny Lange. Her family needed to be notified.

Around eight that night Booth and Brennan were checking into the Marriot Desert Springs. There were cheaper hotels in Indio, but neither wanted to stay in them. She went to the bar to get them a couple of drinks as he checked them in. It felt very clandestine – and was kind of sexy. She knew all about keeping sex on the down low from when she was in college sleeping with her professor, but she had hoped that part of her life was over. She was an adult consenting woman and Booth was an adult consenting man. There were no other people involved. There was no reason why they need to hide their new relationship. She understood Booth's point about PDAs and accepted it enough. She wasn't an exhibitionist; she just felt that nothing should be hidden from prying eyes.

She ordered him a beer and herself a glass of Pinot Noir, but when it arrived she had no taste for it. She returned it for a vodka tonic and again, it didn't go down well. She settled on sparkling water. All of a sudden she didn't feel sexy or like she was having some illicit assignation. She actually felt sick.

Booth slipped into the chair next to hers and slid a key card across to her. "Three-Oh-Six," he said. "I'm next door in Three-Oh-Eight." He waved the other card at her before sticking it in his pocket.

"Next door?" She was more than confused; she was disappointed.

"Working weekend, Bones." He had no intention of sleeping in his room, but they needed to look above reproach. "I gave you the room with the view."

"Fine," she was not going to debate him. "I'm tired anyway. The heat has taken a toll on me today." She picked up her card and stood up.

"Where are you going?"

"I'm going to shower and change into something a little cooler."

"Dinner?"

"I'm not hungry."

"You need to eat, Bones."

"Maybe later. I'll order room service." She started to walk away.

"Bones?"

"I need to lie down. I'm not feeling well. Queasy stomach. Must be the heat."

"One hundred and five will do it to you," he agreed. "You've been working pretty hard this last week or more. Not surprised that you need to crash." He stood up and pressed her hand. "I'll call you in an hour or two?"

"Sure." She walked away. She had no thought in her head but that she wanted to lie down.

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

Booth finished his beer. Went to his room, changed into something he could swim in and did several laps in the pool. But ten o'clock he was back in his room, wide awake and hungry. He picked up the house phone and dialed Brennan's room. She answered on the third ring.

"Hey, were you sleeping?" he asked.

"No, in the shower," she explained. "Have you eaten? I was about to order something. I'm actually very hungry now."

"Nap sounds like it did you a world of good."

"It did. So? Dinner?"

"Sure."

They sat on her balcony overlooking the ground and ate dinner. It was nice. It was a very pretty hotel. They talked a little about work and a little about their friends back home. Around eleven thirty it was time to go to bed. They had an early morning interview with Scott Angel and a flight to catch.

"So," he hedged.

"So?"

"You aren't really going to make me sleep in my own room are you?" Again he hit her with his charmed smile.

"Seems like a waste of money if you don't."

"Seems like money well spent if it keeps anyone from intruding."

"I'm sure the locks on the door work, Booth."

He pulled her into his arms. "Not that kind of intrusion." He kissed her. "So?"

"So? Yeah. Stay."

His smiled broadened. "It's great working with you all day, and knowing I can be with you all night," he said.

"You're going to get sick of me … or I'm going to get on your nerves."

"Maybe … but you aren't right now." He kissed her again and walked her back toward the bed. He pulled her down next to him.

She pulled out her Roxie voice. "Hey Tony, Remember the last time we were in the desert?"

"How could I forget, Roxie? What did you do with that dress?"

"It's in the closet."

"Well, I say you dust it off for our date."

"The date we keep pushing because of work?"

"It'll happen, Bones. Trust me. It will happen."

She kissed him and rolled him over on top of her. "I trust you – but to be honest… room service on the balcony looking over the lake was better than a date."

"You're easy to please … but that won't sway me. We're going out on the town."

"And paint it blue?"

"Red, Bones." He corrected. "We are going to paint the town red."

"Why would it be red? The origin of that phrase is about a riotous mob running rampant in the town and the red is blood."

He would have asked how blue would have been different, but this was another time when he chose not to debate her and stopped the discussion with a kiss and more.


	11. Chapter 11

**That's Why I'm Here**

By LizD

Written July 2011

A/N: Sorry for the hiatus. I will try not to go more than four days between posts as we move toward those life altering words "I'm pregnant."

**Chapter Eleven**

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

After a late night and early morning that included (in no particular order) a leisurely breakfast in bed, a swim in the pool, lots of laughing and other physical activities, Booth and Brennan made their way back to the Sheriff's station in Indio shortly before 10AM. What Booth found so interesting was that as great as this new found closeness was (and it was fantastic); it didn't interfere with how they conducted business. Talking over the case with her that morning while sharing the bathroom was definitely a first, but it also felt like they had been doing it for years. There was no 'playing nice.' Brennan was as exacting as she had always been. And Booth … well, Booth wanted to arrest Scott Angel because he was scum and he knew in his gut that this guy did it. Booth wanted to close this case for political, professional and personal reasons. As per usual, Brennan's science trumped Booth gut. There was one thing that was different now; the debates didn't end with an awkward silence as each maintained their opinion – they ended with an agreement to disagree and a kiss typically instigated by Booth, but always welcome.

The transition into and out of the bedroom, into and out of business and personal interactions didn't seem that unusual to Brennan. She was beginning to wonder what the big deal was and why they hadn't crossed the line between years ago. There had always been this big deal made about not being able to keep the professional when the personal was involved or vice versa. So far, Brennan saw no reason why that had ever been put out there. With each passing day, with each new encounter the trepidation she had faded, the fear that had gripped her to tightly nearly two years ago was but a distant memory. She was comfortable with Booth and found that she wasn't losing herself in him, but she did enjoy the non-work time more than she had expected.

"OK?" Booth asked as he pulled into the parking lot of the Sheriff's station.

Brennan was fine; she was just thinking that it had been less than a week since they 'hooked up' as Angela so colorfully put it. She wondered what the next week would bring and the next. She studied his face for a long moment. There was a way in which he looked at her since last week that was different; it made her feel connected to the world through him. She had never felt that way before not even with her parents. She was tethered to another human being and through him she was tethered to the world. She was no longer alone. The feeling was overwhelming. Her eyes welled with tears.

"Bones?" His faced washed with concern. "Bones, are you alright?"

"Yes," she croaked as tears slipped from her eyes. "Yes, I'm fine."

"What's going on?" He looked toward the entrance to verify that they were not being watched and then took her hand. "Bones, tell me."

"Nothing." She shook her head and added, "I love you."

"What?" He laughed a little relieved that it wasn't something serious - well seriously bad. "I mean, I love you too." He smiled at her trying to get her to smile back. "Where did that come from?"

She started to answer his question but realized he was not really asking. "It's going to be a long day ... a long work day ... I just wanted you to know." She wiped her eyes.

"I know ... but I like to hear it too." He pressed her hand this would be a topic for later discussion. "We ready to go to work?"

"Yes."

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

Before the interview with Angel, Booth and Brennan spoke with Cam.

"We have Linda Monroe's car. Hodgins has been working on it for the past six hours."

"What have you found?" Booth demanded.

"In process, Booth. It isn't magic. It takes time."

"What about the ballistics on the gun? The .45."

"Angela is working on that. You said no mistakes. We aren't cutting any corners. We did find skin cells under victim number four's fingernails."

"Which one is four?"

Both Cam and Brennan answered. "Hailey Marcum."

Cam added, "she was sexually assaulted, Booth."

"What have you found with victim number five?" Brennan asked. She looked to Booth who didn't know which one that was. "Penny Lange," Brennan said.

"I just started that autopsy about three hours ago. I am running a test for the same chemical substance that I found in the others." She paused. "She was sexually assaulted too."

"Are you getting DNA off the victims?"

"We believe so, but I need a sample to compare against."

"You'll have it." Booth ended the call.

"Booth, I'm sure she had more to tell us."

"She can tell us everything when we get this guy back to DC and have run the DNA." He was now very angry. "No mistakes, Bones."

She nodded. "No mistakes," she repeated.

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

"What were your fingerprints doing on Linda Monroe's car?" Booth demanded again.

Scott Angel looked at his lawyer who remained motionless. Angel lived up to his name. He had shimmering blonde hair that glowed like a halo, deep sky blue eyes, a body that was hard and tone that looked like it was sculpted out of marble. His voice - on the few times he spoke - was calming. His smile was nothing short of angelic. Booth hated him on sight. Brennan couldn't help but be drawn to him; she was a human woman after all.

"I can think of only one scenario," Booth ranted on. "That puts Linda Monroe's car near Tucson, Arizona with her and her companions' bags in the trunk, the shotgun in the trunk and your finger prints on the car."

Angel looked back at Booth, then he turned his eyes to Brennan. "You're stunning," he said softly. "If you softened up your hair and put on something pretty -.

Booth slammed his hand down on the metal table loudly. It got everyone's attention. "You don't have to answer these questions, Mr. Angel. You don't have to talk to me at all. We can get your DNA - the hard way or the easy way - and be on our way leaving you to rot in your jail cell until we get all the proof we need to lock you away for the rest of your miserable life."

"Agent Booth," the lawyer started to interrupt. Booth ignored him.

"See, I think you're guilty, but my partner here wants to prove it with science. I don't need the science. I think you met up with those sweet young coeds. Did you even bother to learn their names?" He pulled a picture of each girl out of a folder as he named them and placed it down in front Angel. "Sandra Shilling ... captain of her crew team and studying Russian Lit. Cee Cee Carroll was a theater major. Wasn't she beautiful? That smile would have lit up the silver screen. Linda Monroe ... a senator's daughter ... she was following in her father's footsteps and majoring in political science. And then there was Hailey Marcum. You liked her, didn't you Angel? She had something special. A bit of a geek - computer science major ... innocent, trusting, naive, sweet. When I was in school the geeks didn't look like Hailey. What did you do to her? You took her innocence; you took her trust."

Angel looked at the pictures as if he was seeing these women for the first time.

Next Booth pulled the crime scene photos and tossed them down in front of Angel in a mass but they spread all over the table. Angel's lawyer jumped and turned away in disgust; Angel was unaffected. "One thing led to another ... didn't it Angel? First you got them to give you a ride. Then you got them to buy you some beer. Then you drugged them. You didn't have enough to go around but that's OK they were light weights. It was time to party. You took a liking to Hailey, didn't you? But she fought back. Her friends fought back and you killed them all. You chased them into the woods and killed them. Then you took their car, their money and drove as fast and as far as you could get until you ran into Penny Lange outside Tucson." He placed Penny Lange's picture on top of the pile of crime scene photos. "Penny has a two year old son whose father is in Afghanistan. She was all alone and you flashed those baby blues and a smile and she melted, didn't she? She probably wanted to help you and what did you do? You tied her up, threw her in the trunk, stole her car and drove to the California desert and killed her too. When did you assault her, Angel? Was it before or after you stuffed her in the trunk?"

"Do you have any proof?" Angel said before his lawyer signaled him to be quiet.

"Don't you worry your pretty little head about proof, Mr. Angel. We have the best forensic scientists studying ever spec of dirt or cell left behind to tie you irrefutably to these murders. But a judge would go easier on you if you just confessed: life in prison vs. death penalty."

"Are you charging my client with something?" the lawyer asked.

"Carrying a concealed weapon for one. When we get done with the ballistic test I am sure we will match the gun to the one that killed Penny Lange, Hailey Marcum and Sandra Schilling. We are also testing the shot gun and matching it to the one used to give Linda Monroe her fatal blow. And the forensic team will match that weapon with the one that shot Cee Cee Carroll and Linda Monroe."

Brennan was about to point out that they wouldn't be able to prove that but Booth shot her a look indicating that she not say anything. Brennan looked back at Angel and noticed that he was holding himself oddly. It was difficult for him to move without causing him to wince in pain.

"Go ahead, Bones." Booth nodded for her to take the cheek swab for DNA.

Brennan stood up and moved closer to Angel.

"Make a move that I don't like, Angel, and it will be the last move you make," Booth declared. "Open your mouth."

Brennan took the swab but didn't sit back down. Instead she reached over and touched Angel in the side. Angel cried out. Before anyone knew what was going on, Brennan had ripped open his shirt. There were deep scratch marks on his chest that were not more than two weeks old. And on his left side were wounds consistent with a glancing blow from a shotgun. The wounds were infected and were an angry red hot.

"There is probably buck shot still in there," Brennan said looking at the wound though Angel tried to pull away. "He needs to be seen by a doctor," she announced. "And the pellets should be sent to the Jeffersonian for comparison."

The lawyer looked surprised and defeated but didn't raise an objection - clearly not worth his retainer. Angel still didn't look caught. His expression wasn't smug, it was serene.

"How much more do you need?" Booth implored of Brennan.

"I need twenty-four hours to type and match the DNA."

Booth looked toward the observation window knowing that Deputy Dawes was in there watching. He rapped on the glass once to let Booth know that they would hold him for twenty-four more hours as Booth and his team gathered the evidence and arranged for transport back to DC for arraignment and trail.

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

Booth pulled Brennan outside as soon as the interview was over.

"What the hell were you thinking, Bones?" he asked in a hushed angry tone. "Any lawyer worth his salt is going to be able to get whatever we find from those injuries thrown out in court."

"Why?"

"You assaulted him. I said no mistakes."

"I don't see how that was a mistake," she said.

"We could have gotten a court order if he refused to have an examination done. You can't just rip off a suspect's shirt because you think you noticed that he was moving funny."

"I have studied kinesiology, Booth. It is science. It was not my _**gut**_ telling me something."

"Fine ... good ... it's science. If you see something that you would like to know more about - let me know. I'll do all the legal stuff to make sure it makes it to court, OK?"

"Are you angry with me?"

"Yes ... no ... It doesn't have anything to do with me being angry. This case cannot get thrown out on a technicality and my forensics expert assaulting the witness even if it was in the pursuit of more evidence is the kind of technicality I'm talking about."

"Your forensics expert?"

"Bones, look -." He stopped himself. Took a deep breath and let it out slowly. "It's done. OK. It's done. Let's just get back to Washington, do the science stuff and dot all the 'i's and cross all the 't's and get this guy convicted, OK?"

"Fine." She felt scolded but not like she deserved it. "We need his boots," she said softly almost too softly to hear.

"What?" he asked more irritated at the situation than at her.

"His boots ... we need his boots." Booth hadn't noticed that the boots Angel was wearing. "They match the prints found at the cabin but Hodgins will need to run particulate tests to ... to do all the science stuff." She was annoyed to have her life's work reduced to 'the science stuff.' "There should be blood on that boot." She turned on her heel and walked away.

Booth was left with the knowledge that though this was not their first fight, it was something that was going to need to be addressed and given their new status it was going to take something proactive on his part. In the past they could just ignore it and have a beer at the end of the case and the things said or the tones used in the heat of action would be forgotten or ignored. That kind of stuff festers in a romantic relationship. There would be no festering if Booth had anything to say about it.

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

Brennan was booked on the next plane to DC. She was carrying Angel's DNA sample and his boots. Booth would remain in California until there was sufficient evidence to take him back to DC for the murders of the four girls. If they couldn't get that, they would have to tie him to the murder of Penny Lange. Either way Scott Angel was going down for more than carrying a concealed weapon.

Brennan decided to take a taxi to the airport. She was still a little annoyed at Booth. He wanted to drive her, but she insisted. Brennan had gone to the vehicle to collect her bag. Booth followed her out there.

"Are we OK?" he asked.

She had an overwhelming desire to just pacify the situation. She had no idea where that came from. Brennan was not the type of person to pacify or mollify anyone or anything. It occurred to her that fighting with Booth her partner and lover had more long reaching affects than when he was just her partner. In the end, her true nature won out - no mollification.

"The reason we have been together so long," she started. "And have been so successful at catching the criminals. The reason you sought me out in the first place was because of _'the science stuff'_. You need that, Booth. You need that to convince a jury. You're gut doesn't hold up in court. Your theory about what happens at a crime scene is just a story without _the science stuff_ to back it up. You need me."

"I know that. We are a great team."

"Then I wish you would give it a little more respect."

"I do. I do respect you and what you bring to the investigation. That's why I take you into the field. That's why you are here. You see things. You notice things. You find evidence that I would never see. But there is a procedure and method to collect that evidence. Just like at a crime scene - you have procedures to follow, right? Well, so do I and ripping a suspect's shirt off in the interview room is not proper procedure."

"I was right," she insisted.

"You can be right but it was still wrong. This is the United States of America ... innocent until proven guilty ... and before you say you just proved his guilt -." He stopped himself. "Bones, you know what I'm talking about. You know you can't do stuff like that. Just admit that you were wrong and we can move on."

The taxi arrived at that moment. She moved toward it. Booth grabbed her arm.

"I've got to go." She pulled her arm free. "Got some science stuff to do."

"Why are you hanging on to that?" he asked. "You know I respect you and the work you do. You know that."

She did know, but she was still annoyed with him. "I've got to go."

"Bones?"

"As soon as we get anything definitive, we'll let you know." She stepped into the taxi and was gone.

Booth didn't know why she was so upset. Something struck him - he didn't want to let it go. He didn't want her to leave with them at odds. In the past it was just time and distance and they would get back to center but now if felt different - like no time should be wasted.

He pulled out his phone to call her but she was calling him.

"You're right," she said. "There is procedure. I will be more cognizant in the future." That was as close to an apology as she was going to give.

"Bones, I don't want to fight with you particularly about some low life like Scott Angel."

"We were not fighting about Scott Angel," she corrected. "We had a discussion about how to collect evidence."

"I don't want to fight with you about how to collect evidence," he corrected trying to keep the exasperation out of his voice.

"Booth, we rarely agree when it comes to work. Why is that going to change? Because we are having sex?"

Booth looked around as if someone may have over heard her. "Bones."

"Booth you are good ... better than good ... I find our sexual encounters quite thrilling, but I don't think they will get me to forget who I am, or what I have learned. Did you expect that a physical relationship would change me? My opinions? The way I view the world? Has that been your experience in the past with women?"

Booth felt his face flushing. "No ... no. Come on, Bones."

"Booth, we are going to fight. We are going to continue to have differing opinions. We will not always agree. That is who we are. If you can't see the difference between personal and professional ..."

He exhaled loudly hoping she would hear that he was frustrated. "Fine, we can disagree - but work is work, and off work is off work."

"I don't know what that means."

"It means, Bones, that I love you. I'm sorry I'm not flying home with you. I'll miss you until I get to see you again - until we can be alone again. It means that no matter what happens in this case - or any other case - you and I are solid, right?"

"Of course. I would hope that you wouldn't want to end our romantic relationship over some minor point of procedure."

"It's not minor, Bones," he insisted. "Your science needs to be respected ... so does my law, OK?"

"Ok." She was quiet for a moment. "Angela said something about make-up sex."

Booth almost laughed. "What did she say?"

"She said it was better, but I'm not sure if this qualifies."

"This was not a fight, Bones. It was ... something else." He couldn't help himself; he just couldn't stay mad at her. He had been angry for so long, he didn't want to go back. "And there are advantages to both."

"Well then I look forward to getting into a fight with you so we can have make-up sex and I can judge for myself."

He shook his head in disbelief. "That's what I love about you, Bones. You always want to do your own research."

"Testing hypothesizes is the only way to learn."

"You'll be my teacher."

"I think we have a lot to learn from each other," she said. "Will you be home tonight?"

"Hours behind you, Bones. Hours behind you."


	12. Chapter 12

**That's Why I'm Here**

By LizD

Written July 2011

**Chapter Twelve **

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

Booth was hours behind her – sixteen of them by time he was ready to call it a day. In that time the preliminary test of Scott Angel's DNA was a match to DNA found on Hailey Marcum. That was enough for Caroline. Angel would be charged with at least four counts of murder but as soon as the Jeffersonian tied him to Penny Lange's murder he would be charged with that too. She ordered that he be extradited to DC. Just because she was filing charges, Caroline did not let up on the team at the Jeffersonian; in fact she gave them their marching orders. They needed to get the proof to paint a picture of the crimes, to tell the story and prove to the jurors beyond a reasonable doubt that Scott Angel had kidnapped, sexually assaulted and murderer these fine young women. Even so, the pressure was off for immediate answers; they could work more methodically to get the definitive proof. That meant they could all go home and get some sleep for the night; all the squints at the lab had been hitting it pretty hard the past few days. Brennan stayed later than the rest, but she was home by midnight.

The U.S. Marshalls made the transfer and Booth waited to fly with them – no mistakes. Booth was set to arrive back in DC very late and then there would be the booking of Angel to oversee. Without much discussion, Brennan went to her home and Booth went to his. The difference of opinion of that morning was forgotten. They had spoken numerous times but it was mostly about the case. Their final conversation after the business was out of the way was a little stilted but that was probably more to do with being overtired than anything else. They spoke just before Booth boarded the plane.

"It is going to be very late when I get done," he said by way of explaining that he would be going home. He paused. "I'm taking tomorrow off." He paused again. "Can you?"

"I'll check with Cam. I probably won't be able to take the whole day, but maybe the afternoon."

"Does she know?"

"Cam? Does she know that we are having sex?"

"I would have phrased it differently."

"We have not spoken about it and there is nothing in her behavior or manner that would lead me to believe that she thinks anything is different between us."

Booth yawned.

"Will you be able to sleep on the plane?" she asked.

He laughed. "Probably not. Not riding in first class this time and I don't have a soft shoulder to sleep on."

She smiled thinking about him sleeping next to her as she worked on the way out. "I'll see you tomorrow," she said.

"Yes, you will. Sleep well."

They hung up; each was thinking that they wouldn't sleep as well as they had been sleeping.

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

Brennan found that she was unable to focus on her work much of the day. She was easily distracted and replayed the discussion with Booth over in her mind. She wasn't focused on the content so much as Booth's attitude. He was doing the stuff he had been doing for year which got worse when he came back from Afghanistan and hasn't really completely gone back to the way it was. He was ... exasperated with her. There were times he was irritated, frustrated and annoyed - he always had been. But now he seemed to be exasperated; the sighing, the exhaling loudly, the eye-rolls were all signs that she was pushing him to a breaking point. It was only a matter of time before he broke. She didn't want to push him to that point, but she also didn't want to compromise her beliefs or opinions. This was one of the reasons why she never believed that she and Booth were compatible, and she had to believe that he felt the same way. They even agreed that they would not be compatible when they were stuck in the elevator. She tried to pacify herself with the knowledge that at the end of the night they did honestly say that they wanted to be together at some point in the future. Well what she had said was that she wanted to try to be together. He seemed to agree.

She remembered when he was with Hannah, or even Tess, but Hannah was fresher in her mind. He was happy. He was smiling. He joked and played with Hannah. She never saw him be anything but loving and kind to her and he never appeared to be irritated, frustrated, annoyed or exasperated with her. She had to grant that she was not with them twenty-four/seven. She didn't know much about how they met or what their relationship was like in Afghanistan. In fact she hadn't gotten a clear understanding what Booth saw in Hannah but it was clear that he enjoyed being with her. Brennan had to admit that being with Hannah was easy, but ultimately the encounter was not fulfilling, but that was Brennan. Clearly it was that way with Booth too. She was not a consolation prize. He asked her to come back to Washington, he moved her into his apartment and into their lives. He asked her to marry him. In all likelihood they would be married if Hannah didn't turn him down. Brennan really didn't understand that part either. Hannah's attempt at explanation would not hold up under scrutiny. In the end she had to accept that she didn't know everything about Booth and Hannah's relationship - or about Hannah herself.

Still, Brennan had never seen Booth smile that much when they were together - even recently. It was a concern.

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

Booth finally got to his apartment some time after 2AM. He was in bed as soon as he dropped his bags and was asleep by the time his head hit the pillow. He woke up early in a good mood. When he realized he was awake he reached over to the other side of the bed looking for her. He knew she wasn't there, but there was satisfaction in knowing that she had been and would be again. He decided that he needed to hear her voice if he couldn't hold her in his arms.

"Morning, Bones," Booth said cheerfully when she picked up the phone.

"Morning." It was early but it was wonderful to hear his voice the first thing even if it was before the alarm. She was getting used to it. It wasn't the hello of people who knew each other well. It wasn't the hello of friends. It wasn't the hello of partners. It was the hello of a new lover - soft, sweet, sexy and typically meant more than just a greeting. She never allowed herself to enjoy the little things when she was involved in a sexual relationship or maybe there were never there to enjoy; like hearing the voice of her lover on the other end of the line first thing in the morning. It was nice with Booth; really nice.

"I missed you last night," he whispered in his low sexy voice.

"I'm still in bed," she said stretching and snuggling back into the pillows pulling the one he had used days ago against her chest.

"Is that an invitation?"

"Do you need an invitation?"

"It's nice to be asked," he admitted.

"Would you care to join me?"

"Oh yeah," he admitted. "But I have a different idea."

"Oh?"

"Yeah. I don't want stealing a private moment between dead bodies to be the staple of our relationship. I mean it will be part of it because we're dedicated and time is not always our friend, but I think we deserve more than that, don't you? We deserve a little effort."

"What did you have in mind?" she was intrigued.

"Would you have dinner with me tonight ... my place ... say around seven?"

"Your place? Your apartment?"

"Yes, my apartment," he said looking around his dusty abode. "Best place in town … I know the chef … and very private."

"I'd like that."

"Good." He was pleased that she agreed so readily; a very good sign. "Is seven OK?"

"Seven is fine."

"Bring an overnight bag."

"Wouldn't that be presumptuous of me?"

"We are way passed that part, Bones."

"I'll see you tonight."

"I'll see you tonight," he repeated.

Booth ended the call with a smile that filled his whole face. Then he was hit with the list of things he needed to get done before seven. He needed to clean the apartment top to bottom, shop for food after planning a menu, get a haircut, cook the food, and set a mood. He imagined the scene: candles and flowers, soft music, great food, fantastic wine and some decadent dessert to top it all off. It was an evening that probably no one had ever planned for Temperance Brennan. He liked being the first with something for her. He hadn't done it often; two or three times in his life.

First things first. The apartment.

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

Brennan was in the Bone room when Angela waddled in.

"Morning Sweetie, how late did you stay last night?"

"I left around midnight."

"Well I should have stayed with you." She placed her hands on her swollen abdomen, "Little Hodgins here kept me up all night. I can't wait to get this kid out of me."

"You are still three weeks away. It would be inadvisable -"

"Nineteen days," Angela corrected.

"I don't think you can be that precise."

"This kid is getting evicted in nineteen days ... ready or not."

Brennan smiled at her friend knowing that to speak reason to her was futile.

"So, did Booth make a booty call last night?" Angela struggled to get comfortable on the stool.

"Angela," Brennan frowned.

"Come on ... this is the best part. The beginning is when the sex is new and each time is exciting. You do it whenever and where ever you can. When Hodgins and I got together it was the best sex of my life." She stole a look out the door. "Don't tell Hodgins I said that."

"Wouldn't that be something he wants to know?"

"NO ... honey, no. It would imply that the sex we are having now isn't the best. Men have some pretty fragile egos." Brennan shrugged her acceptance of that theory. "So how is it?"

"Good." Brennan was a little embarrassed and pretended to be distracted with the work.

"Only good?"

"Great ... really great." She smiled a little thinking of the morning in Palm Desert. It was really great.

"Did you share a room on your little business trip?" She made elaborate air quotes around the expression: business trip.

"Officially no."

"Unofficially?"

Brennan smiled and kept focused on her work.

"That's the Booth I know and love." Angela got serious. "So really, is everything OK?"

"I have nothing to compare it to ... not really. This is new territory for me."

"Honey, Booth is not the first man you've had a relationship with."

"Speaking purely sexually that is true."

Angela grinned. "But you say it's great … with Booth?"

Brennan didn't want to speak about the encounters she had with Booth but had to agree that they were very enjoyable and yet she still felt that they hadn't shared a time where they were in top form – physically. She kept that last part to herself.

"If that smile on your face is any judge, they were a hell of a lot more than enjoyable."

Brennan shrugged a yes. "However, my previous experience with men has not prepared me for this relationship with Booth. This is more than sex."

"That's a good think, isn't it? I mean, you didn't love those other guys. You love Booth."

Brennan nodded. She had to admit something to Angela that was only skirting the edges of her mind. "I sometimes feel very uncertain." She paused trying to find the right way to express her concern. "In the past, I was not interested in a long term relationship. It was very easy to end when it became uncomfortable or there was a point on which we couldn't agree; I was not invested."

"You're invested now, right? I mean you want to work through those points with Booth. Don't you?"

Brennan nodded slowly. "Booth and I know each other so well; it's a matter of accepting personality traits in the other that were previously ignored or tolerated because we were only partners."

"That's true for any couple, sweetie - toothpaste, toilet seat, hogging the covers, snoring ... you have all that to look forward to. But as for how you see the world - what your true values are you are a matched set. And it won't get between you know but you know where the bodies are buried already - so to speak."

"Yes, I can see our partnership history would be an advantage."

"But?"

"I find that I second guess myself more than I ever have."

"You're not second guessing Booth, are you?"

"I believe that Booth is satisfied with the relationship at the moment."

"But?"

"But he will want more."

"That's good, isn't it? You want more too, right?" Just then Angela twinged and bent over holding her swollen abdomen. "Easy there Junior ... you've got the rest of your life to play soccer."

"Can I get you anything?"

"A time machine ... whoever said pregnancy was a beautiful experience has clearly never been pregnant."

"It's said that you will change your mind after the child is born."

"I'll get back to you on that."

"There is nothing I can do?"

"No ... no. I'm fine." She leaned back and exhaled the breath she was holding. "So back to you and Booth."

"I want a baby," Brennan blurted out.

Angela nearly laughed. "Still? With me as the poster child?" She laughed again. "Well that's more ... that's a whole lot more. Did you talk to Booth about it ... did it come up on conversation?"

"He is not opposed to the idea."

"I'm sure he has stronger feelings than that ... but he probably told you to shelve this idea for a little while, am I right?"

"Yes."

"I'm sure he wants to have a little time enjoying just being with you before it you add a little bundle of joy," she said sarcastically. "You still haven't gone on a date yet, or out of town on a romantic weekend - that didn't involve a dead body. You haven't even had a first fight yet – first fight as lovers, am I right?"

"We had a discussion yesterday morning before I left that he didn't classify as a fight but it was a disagreement."

"How do you classify a fight?" Angela was confused.

"He said that we didn't need make up sex for it."

Angela burst out laughing. "See, that is something else you can look forward to."

"He's making dinner for me tonight at his apartment."

"Way to go Booth."

"Why?"

"It's a thing ... a thing men do when they want to impress the woman they love."

"I don't understand."

"It shows how thoughtful and talented and caring a guy can be. He shops, he cooks, he lights candles, he buys flowers ... he is caretaking. It shows the woman what a good catch he is - it shows his feminine side. Don't tell Booth I said that. Look at is as a mating ritual and Booth is fluffing his feathers to attract you."

"Is that really necessary?"

"To get your relationship out of the bedroom it is. Don't worry, it won't last; it usually only happens at the beginning of a relationship - after they're sure you're hooked. They won't step ten feet near the kitchen or the grocery store afterward and flowers are for birthdays, anniversaries and Valentine's Day – if they remember." She smiled proudly. "Hodgins is the exception."

"It's clear how much Dr. Hodgins is committed to you."

"Yeah, I got myself a good one." She smiled at her friend. "So dinner at Booth's is good. Doesn't seem like him."

"I disagree. It is very like him. I know for certain he cooked for Hannah. Of course the dinner was ruined because they had sex first - at least on one occasion."

"Booth told you that?" Angela was appalled.

"No, Hannah did."

"I knew that your friendship with Hannah was not a good idea."

"It was not much of a friendship. She has not contacted me. She sent one email shortly after she left asking me about Booth, but she hasn't responded to me since. I stopped writing."

"You really wanted to maintain a friendship with that woman?"

"No," Brennan said honestly. "She may not have responded because I was very disapproving of her treatment of Booth."

Angela laughed. "What did you say?"

"I challenged her before she moved in with him about her commitment to a relationship with him. I told her that he would give himself to her completely."

Angela snorted a laugh. "And you were right - the more fool he."

"She assured me that she was as committed. Clearly she was not. I reminded her of that conversation and her assurance and told her that her treatment of Booth was unforgivable. I'm sure that had something to do with it."

"Ya think?"

"I do." She got a faraway look in her eye.

"What?"

"There are times that I still think that Hannah was a better match for Booth. That had she been able to commit to a life with him, that he would be happier with her."

"What?" Angela was shocked.

"He was happy with her. He smiled more. He laughed more." Brennan looked down. "He is not that way with me. He snaps and barks and rolls his eyes a lot at me in a very disapproving way."

"Oh, Sweetie." Angela was just about to launch into the hundred or so reasons why Brennan shouldn't think like that but they were interrupted by Cam and some matter of business. The only thing Angela was allowed to say was that Brennan should trust Booth. Brennan wanted to point out that she was taking her cues from Booth and she did trust him but that did not change her belief that Hannah was a better match for him. She had to wonder what Booth saw in her that was similar in any way to Hannah, similar enough to want the same type of relationship with both women.

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

Booth was down on his knees with his head and arms in the oven scrubbing it out. It hadn't been cleaned since before he left for Afghanistan. He was dressed in his laundry clothes - the clothes that you save for the day you are doing laundry: shorts that were a little too tight, the tee shirt that was just too ripped to wear out in public. He also had a bandanna around his head and a pair of Keds that should have been thrown out years ago.

The living room was in complete disarray as he cleaned the rest of the house. He has started cleaning and he got carried away. A quick dust, running a vacuum and opening a window was just not going to cut it. So he cranked up the music and went to work. He cleaned out the closet in his bedroom and the drawers in the bureau (he left room for Brennan to keep a few things there). He stripped the bed, flipped the mattress and remade it with the best sheets he had: 1000 thread count Egyptian cotton, never been used. He dusted everything from the pictures on the walls to the items on the shelves. Once he was satisfied with that room, he moved on to the bathroom. He pulled everything out of his medicine cabinet and the shelf by the sink and scrubbed the whole room down until it was shiny and clean. He took down all the clocks on the wall, reset, dusted and rehung them. He pulled out the guest towels that he had stored away and hung those, an extra two for Bones. She liked two towels, one for her hair and one for her body. His bathroom was pretty small, but he made room for some of her stuff there too. It was time to move on to the kitchen. All cabinets were emptied and wiped down. If the sell by date was past its prime, it was tossed. If he didn't recognize it, it got tossed. The refrigerator had been pretty empty in the past few months, but it still got the Booth spring cleaning treatment; he need to make room for all Brennan's produce. He was about to move on to the kitchen floor, when he looked inside the oven. That stopped him. He wasn't sure when the last time he used his oven, but it needed cleaning badly.

He still had the walls and floor to do in the kitchen. There was more laundry to be done. He had been running up and down the stairs all day doing loads of laundry. Not everything was dirty, but if it had been sitting on the shelf for more than six months untouched, it got washed. Then he had to tackle the living room. That was going to be big. He wanted to pull up the rug and air it outside and put a good oil on the hardwood floors. It was getting late but he was moving at top speed. He was in a good mood and the music helped. It was up very loud which was a good thing as it drowned out his voice.

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

Brennan was able to break free from the lab around lunch time and thought she would bring Booth some lunch. She heard the music from the street - it helped that all his windows were open. As she climbed the stairs she heard him singing along with the music. She sort of recognized the song as something her parents used to play but couldn't place the artist which might have been because Booth's voice was nearly drowning it out.

She walked into Booth's apartment as the door was wide open and saw the mess in the living room. There were boxes and bags on the floor. Some were filled with clothes others linens and other household items. On top of one of the boxes she saw a couple of blouses and a pair of heels. She recognized them right away; she had seen Hannah wear them. There was no reason for it, but she was unnerved by the memory of Hannah living with Booth in that apartment. Booth's place used to be as comfortable to her as her own home. How many times had Booth and Brennan had a beer, shared Chinese, talked, really talked in that space. The night Hannah moved in and Brennan, Cam and Angela came over to 'help' Brennan was forced to accept that she was not welcome there any time day or night like she had been. It was no one's fault but her own - she accepted that then and now - but it still hurt, then and now.

The lyrics of the song crept into her mind and sent it spinning in a direction that she couldn't control.

_**And if you can't be with the one you love, honey**__**  
><strong>__**Love the one you're with, Love the one you're with ...**_

_**Don't be angry - don't be sad**__**  
><strong>__**Don't sit crying over good times you've had**__**  
><strong>__**There's a girl right next to you**__**  
><strong>__**And she's just waiting for something to do ...**_

_**And if you can't be with the one you love, honey**__**  
><strong>__**Love the one you're with...**_

_**Love the one you're with...**_

_**Love the one you're with...**_

_**Love the one you're with...**_

_**Love the one you're with...**_

_**Love the one you're with...**_

_**Love the one you're with...**_

A pain gripped her and she wished she hadn't have come and would have left immediately but the music stopped. She looked up and saw Booth standing by the stereo.

"Hey Bones!"

She wanted to melt into the wallpaper.


	13. Chapter 13

**That's Why I'm Here**

By LizD

Written July 2011

**Chapter Thirteen **

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

**F-L-A-S-H-B-A-C-K : L-A-T-E-M-A-R-C-H-2-0-1-1**

Booth stepped out of the airport and into a waiting taxi cab. He gave the address of the hotel and leaned back heaving a heavy sigh. His heart was racing and his mind was spinning. What the hell was he doing?

The last fifteen hours of travel through planes, trains and taxi cabs he had been trying to figure out what he was going to say, what he needed to hear, what he was hoping to gain or lose. The only thing he knew for sure was that he was doing the right thing - going, seeing her, talking to her face to face - whatever happened. Sweets would call it closure – Booth never understood what that meant. What he knew was that it had to be done so he could move on and he really wanted to move on. He had set a date to move on but he wanted to be ready.

He looked out the window and his mind wandered back to the night of the blizzard a week ago.

_**I'm just ... angry ... really angry. Not at you.**_

_**Ok.**_

_**I just need time, that's all ... I just need time to kind of hang back and find that inner peace before I get back out there. You know what we are talking about here, right?**_

_**Yes.**_

_**You and me ... and ... you know, love ... happiness in life ... and fate.**_

_**I don't believe in fate, but I know what we're talking about. ... I am improving.**_

_**Improving?**_

_**Yes, I'm quite strong. **_

_**Well, you've always been strong. **_

_**You know the difference between strength and imperviousness, right?**_

_**Well not if you're going to get all scientific on me.**_

_**Well, a substance that is impervious to damage doesn't need to be strong. When we met, I was an impervious substance, now I am a strong substance. **_

_**I think I know what you mean.**_

_**A time could come when you aren't angry anymore and I'm strong enough to risk losing the last of my imperviousness ... maybe then we could try to be together.**_

"A time could come," he said softly too himself. "A time will come … but I can't hang back and wait."

The cab pulled up in front of the hotel. Booth paid the driver and stepped out. He had no luggage he wasn't planning on staying. He had his passport and a return ticket in his pocket. He needed to be back at the airport in less than two hours. He hadn't called first. It was very likely that he could have come all that way for nothing. On the other hand tickets were meant to be changed. He stood in line to speak with the desk clerk.

"Seeley?"

He turned and saw her coming toward him. She was just as he remembered - fresh, beautiful, smiling.

"Seeley, I can't believe you're here."

She was with someone. A man. Tall. Tan with sun bleached hair. Muscular. He was young, good looking if you go for that sort of rugged, untamed, rakishness – kind of a cross between a surfer and Indiana Jones. She walked faster toward Booth leaving the man to stay back. She stepped into Booth expecting an embrace instead she got an awkward hug that couldn't end fast enough. He could barely look in her eyes.

"It's good to see you," she said a little tentatively.

"It's good to see you too, Hannah." Booth said looking over her shoulder at the man she had been with.

Hannah looked back and waved him off. "He's a reporter from London," she explained.

Booth nodded but made no comment. The man was a lot more than just a reporter from London. He saw the way the guy was looking at him. The guy before Booth probably looked at Booth the same way.

"So ... you were just in the neighborhood and thought you would drop by?" she said mischievously.

Booth looked at her. She was who she always was - playful, jovial, with a ready smile. "I didn't like how we left things," he said. "There are some things I want to say and I thought we should talk face to face."

"You don't need to say anything, Seeley." She assumed he was there to apologize but his demeanor told her not to expect reconciliation.

"I don't have a lot of time, is there some where we could talk?"

"Sure ... sure." She nodded toward that door that lead out to the garden. He followed her. They found a bench that seemed out of the way enough for a private conversation.

They sat quietly for a moment as Booth was forced to find the words he wanted to say. "I want to apologize to you. I behaved badly the last time we saw each other."

"I understand."

"Do you?" he asked.

"I hurt you," she stated. "I didn't mean to. I never wanted to hurt you. I thought you understood." She flashed him a familiar smile. There was nothing different about her. She was still happy and joyful. He had been angry and soul searching and struggling to find meaning - any shred of meaning he could hang on to - and she was just blithely going on with her life; their break up had had no impact on her.

Her attitude shocked him. As much as he wanted to apologize, as much as he felt that he had behaved badly; she clearly was completely unaffected. What did he need to apologize for? She was the one that needed to be forgiven. "Did you ever love me?" he blurted out.

"Of course I did ... I still do. You're an amazing man. I went to Washington to because I loved you. I'll never know anyone like you." Her words sounded sincere but there was something missing. Something he had never noticed before. She said them too easily as if there were no weight to the words, no gravity, no impact. "I love you, Seeley."

He studied her for a moment. "I don't think you and I have the same definition of that word."

"Probably not," she admitted easily as if it were no big deal. "I wasn't ready for us to end."

"But you knew we would have ... ended at some point. You were never considering staying?"

She shrugged a nod and a no. "I know the kind of man you are Seeley. I knew you would want to do the marriage thing and when you did it would end. I just assumed that you knew that it was not going to be me ... not that I'm not flattered ... but -."

"You're not the marrying kind," he said flatly. FLATTERED ... she was flattered? What in the hell was he thinking asking this ball of fluff, this immature, selfish, child to spend her life with him?

"No ... but you don't want to marry someone like me."

"Someone like you?" At the moment he agreed with her but he morbidly needed to hear her take on it.

"I'd never make you happy, Seeley. You're all about stability and making a home and putting down roots. I'm a nomad. If I can't fit it in my duffel, I don't want it."

"And you will live like that forever?"

"My parents did ... I see no reason to change. There is too much world to experience."

"And marriage is not something you want to experience."

She didn't want to answer; she didn't need to answer. "I thought we were having fun."

"Fun?"

"Fun, yes."

"You quit your job, moved to Washington DC and in with me ... for fun?"

"There is always another job, Seeley," she stated. "Moving in with you was expedient … why would I rent an apartment when we would be spending all our time together. It was really that big a deal."

He shook his head. "It was to me."

"I see that now." She slowly shook her head. "I'm sorry?" she offered but she really wasn't. "We were having fun, Seeley."

"It was a lot more than that to me."

"Maybe you wanted it to be," she said quickly feeling like she was being scolded. "But if you really think about it you liked the idea of being in love with me ... or maybe it was just the idea of love itself and it had nothing to do with me."

"That's not true."

"Seeley ... come on ... we met in a war zone and your head was back home. All you could think about was your son, your work and your partner. Do you know how many times you brought Temperance into a conversation even when we were in bed? You were just biding your time until you went back home to your life."

He hated that she knew Brennan and didn't want her to speak about his relationship with Brennan. "You're not going to convince me that I didn't love you."

"But you don't anymore," she said as if she were winning a point.

"No ... No I can see that things were not as I thought they were."

"Can't you just let it be what it was ... really intense with a lot of laughing and great sex."

"That's all it was to you?"

"You wouldn't let it be any more," she pleaded. "And I was fine with that. I didn't want any more."

"I asked you to marry me," he protested.

"Yeah, why did you do that?"

"Because I wanted to spend the rest of my life with you?" The words sound hollow in his ears.

"Did you? Or was that just the fastest way you could think of to break up with me and get me out of your life?"

"I can't believe you are saying this."

"Seeley, you knew how I felt about marriage and kids. We talked about it a lot before you went home. It was the reason you never seriously asked me to move back with you."

"We agreed to a long distance relationship."

"Yes, we did ... but it wasn't going to be anything more than what it was."

"I don't understand why you came to Washington."

"I wasn't ready for us to end."

"And Washington and the press corps were just experiences you wanted to try?"

"I love you Seeley. I didn't expect you to move me into your house and ask me make friends with your son."

"I thought you liked Parker."

"I do like Parker ... I love Parker ... as your son, not my step-son. If you remember correctly I really didn't want to meet him."

"I thought you were worried about him not liking you."

"There was a little of that, but mostly I didn't want to get too close."

"Cause you had one foot out the door."

"You make it sound like a bad thing. At least I know what I want and don't want - and I am willing to go after it."

"What is that supposed to mean?"

"You and Temperance."

"What?"

"All that talk about it being in the past ... If you need to say that to convince yourself, fine, but you are only fooling yourself."

"I would never have cheated on you," he pressed.

"No, no you wouldn't have ... and look what you would have missed because your ego got a little bruised."

"You don't know anything about me and Bones?"

"I know what I got from her and from you. You weren't the same man in DC as you were in Afghanistan. Temperance distracted you. I thought it was your job, but it was her. I know you tried to on me, but she was always right there, right behind you, beside you. If I were a jealous woman do you think I would have tolerated your partnership with her? I honestly thought you were trying to make her jealous."

Booth dismissed that last part. "She was nothing but kind to you and accepting of us."

"Yes, yes … she is a good and loyal friend." She shook her head. "Why do you think she did that? Because she liked me? No. Not at all. She did it to stay close to you because you were shoving her out of your life with a crowbar all the while keeping her close as your partner. I'm amazed she stayed as loyal to you. You wouldn't believe the email I got from her after I left. She ripped me up one side and down the other."

"What?"

"Don't worry. She didn't say anything about you. As I said she is loyal to you. She'd suffer anything for you."

"I didn't come here to talk about, Bones," he said adamantly.

"Seeley, we had a really great thing that was never meant to last ... it couldn't last - for a number of reasons and not all on my side. Ask yourself why you and I never really talked about anything. Anytime something serious came up, we had sex - great sex, but essentially just sex. I learned more about you from Temperance and Parker than I did from you. I'm a reporter Seeley, I know things. I learn things. I seek out truths. None of the truths I have about your, came from you. Why?"

"Why?" He was confused. What was she asking?

"I have an answer if you really want to know?"

"Fine, would love to hear your take on it." He really wouldn't love it, but he was intrigued. It was as if the past year he was living a lie.

"Don't be angry ... don't be sad. We had a good time, Seeley. We had a great time. I hope you will remember that in time. I have no regrets and I don't want you to have any either."

"Why do you think I didn't share my deepest darkest secrets with you?" he asked bringing her back to the subject.

"Two reasons ... one you didn't need to. You had Temperance as a confidant. She knows everything about you; she is the one you turn to. I understood it. I accepted it. It wasn't a problem. You two knew each other for years and were partners. She killed to protect you - that is huge for someone like her. I understood the loyalty and bond that created between you two. I envied it, but I wasn't jealous and I knew it was the kind of bond you and I would never have."

"Why?"

"Because I was a good time, Seeley. That's why you were with me. I was a good time. You needed that. You were in a very dark place when I met you and there are times when you still go back to that dark place, but you didn't want to bring me there. You wanted a distraction. I distracted you. I was your consolation prize."

He started at the use of that expression. "I'm not really enjoying this picture you are painting of me. I thought I loved you."

"I believe you did, but given your reaction to my refusal to get married, I have to believe that it wasn't the forever kind of love that you are seeking. There was no compromise, Seeley. There was no discussion. It was just over."

"That's why I'm here."

"To apologize not reconcile, right?"

"I needed to see you," he explained.

"To see if you were still in love with me ... and you aren't, are you?"

He thought for a moment. "No. But I still care about you."

"I want you to be happy, Seeley. I really hope you find everything you are looking for in life. No one deserves it more than you do."

"And what do you want?"

"I have it," she said proudly with no explanation.

Booth felt as if he was really seeing her for the first time. Really seeing himself in her eyes. Really seeing the relationship for what it was and his role in all the fall out. He had no thoughts of falling in love when he went to Afghanistan. He was reeling from his parting with Brennan. As each day passed and he realized that Brennan had essentially cut him out of her life, his mood got darker and darker and then Hannah appeared. She brought light and joy to an otherwise very dark place. He didn't have to do a thing. He didn't have to think, or explain or justify. Hannah didn't ask for anything - she gave. She gave her time, her attention, her body. It was easy to be with her. When he left to go home he was sorry to leave her, he imagined himself in love but knew that it wasn't enough to keep him with her or her with him. He remembered telling Brennan that it was 'as serious as a heart attack' but he knew it wasn't. He was saying that to hurt Brennan, but again she proved impervious to pain.

When Hannah showed up in Washington his mind started believing that what they had was more than he imagined, but she was right. He didn't disclose to her all the dark sides of his life or his thoughts. She was his bright spot. She was his joy. She was his happiness. He wanted to protect that. Keep it safe. Keep it clean. Keep it pure. But that is not love at least not the kind of love that makes a marriage and a lifetime. Why did he ask her to marry him? Was she right that he was trying to get out of the relationship and that was the fastest way and to make it not his fault? He replayed that scene with Sweets a thousand times and just couldn't accept that Sweets had yet again goaded him into making a choice that he knew in his heart was wrong.

In the end it really didn't matter anymore. There was no reason to be angry. There were misunderstandings but really no fault to be placed - at least nowhere but on himself. He moved too quickly with Hannah and if he stopped to think about what he was doing he would change his mind - so he charged straight ahead into the wall. Maybe that was what he needed to get him to snap out of it. She wasn't to blame. She was exactly what he needed when he needed it and he did love her but the not the way he wanted to love someone. Not the way he wanted to be loved. They parted as friends and Booth went home with a lighter heart and no anger.

The closer he got to Washington, the more he thought about Brennan. Now all he had to do was wait for her to risk losing the last of her imperviousness and they could try to be together. All he wanted was a chance. He learned his lesson. He knew the playing field. Brennan didn't want the same thing from a relationship as he did; it would come down to if what she gave was enough for him. He wasn't going to get his ideal, but then again, Brennan was so much more than his ideal. She just had to give them a chance and maybe Booth would change his dream or maybe he wouldn't have to.

**E-N-D-F-L-A-S-H-B-A-C-K : L-A-T-E-M-A-R-C-H-2-0-1-1**

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

Booth was been cleaning all morning. He was almost done with the apartment but then there was shopping and cooking, showering. He had wanted to get a haircut, but that might not happen. He had woken up in a good mood and it was staying with him. Booth liked to be productive and he was really enjoying the idea of cooking for Brennan in a romantic setting. He was thinking of the playlist which would include some very 'set the mood' tunes that he had in his mix though she would probably never hear the words. Brennan wasn't like that. She liked the music of music not the lyrics. He smiled to think of all the things he was going to get to introduce her to: baseball, football, hockey, music, pop culture, food. He was going to open a world to her and if he were a betting man, he would have bet that she would open up a world to him as well. He had thought about what they would be like as a couple for many years. He had convinced himself that it would never work; that they were just too different. There was still some fear of that, but not much. It had only been a week. They hadn't been off work yet and the sting of Vincent's loss was still clouding everything, but he could already tell that whatever he had been thinking about them as a couple was too shortsighted. He wasn't sure what the future would bring, but he knew in his gut that a future was there. She would be in his life for the next thirty, or forty, or fifty years; maybe not as his wife, or even lover, but she would be there for him as he would be there for her. One day at a time, they would get there. No more running away. No more obfuscating. Open, honest, real. That was the only way to move forward. It felt good. It felt right. Brennan was not easy, she was not cheap and she was not ever going to change that – but she was worth it.

As he was thinking about what to make for dinner with his head in the oven he realized he hadn't had breakfast or lunch and there was nothing left in the fridge. He decided to call for deli so he could finish cleaning. He stepped into the living room and turned off the music. He looked up to grab the phone, Brennan was standing there.

"Hey Bones," he said joyfully.

She looked stunned.

"Bones!" Booth called to her. She saw him but didn't respond. "Bones, I didn't know you were coming by." He saw the bag in her hand. "Is that for me?" He nodded to it because it didn't seem that she understood what he was talking about.

She looked down and was almost surprised to see that she was holding something. She handed it to him.

"What's that they say about great minds thinking a like? I was just about to call for some lunch." He pulled out the sandwich and the chips and took a bite hungrily. "Thanks, Bones. I'd kiss you but I'm filthy." He pushed the box that held Hannah's items on to the floor to make a place for her to sit. "Have a seat." He leaned on the arm of the couch. "Did you bring yourself anything or are we sharing this?" He took another big bite. 

"Do you believe that?" she asked.

"What?" he said with a mouth full.

"That you should love the one you're with."

"What?" He was at a total loss. "What are you talking about?"

"The song ... the one that was just playing ... the one you were singing along to quite boisterously."

"I don't understand." She nodded for him to turn on the music again. He did and Stephen Stills came blaring out of the speakers again. He turned it off. "It's just a song, Bones. It's not my mantra." He took another bite.

"It seems like a philosophy that you live by."

He nearly choked on the sandwich. "What?" he said with more annoyance. "What are you talking about? It was a song. I was singing along with it. _**I Drink Alone**_ by George Thoroughgood was on just before that is that my _philosophy_ too?"

Brennan's eyes darted to the half empty beer bottle on the coffee table. Booth had opened it about an hour ago when he was cleaning out the fridge - he didn't want it to go to waste.

"OK. Bad example," he admitted. "It's a song, Bones. What are you getting at?"

She nodded to the box on the floor that had Hannah's belongings in it. Booth hadn't realized they were Hannah's clothes. He didn't recognize them and to be honest he didn't clean his closets out much in the past ten years, they could have been anyone's.

"I don't understand."

"Am I the consolation prize?" she asked.

"What?" He stood up and dropped the sandwich on the table. "How can you say that? How can you even think that? Bones, what the hell, huh? Where is this coming from?"

"You're angry," she pronounced.

"I'm not angry," he shouted. He took the tone out of his voice. "I'm not angry. I'm not. I'm happy," he said through gritted teeth.

"You don't appear to be happy." She started to launch into all the physical markers of anger but Booth cut her off.

"OK … stop. Just stop." He leaned down onto the arm of the couch. "Let's rewind back to the beginning, OK?" She stood motionless and silent. "I'm here, cleaning my ass off and listening to some rock and roll. I'm getting ready for tonight … and oh what a night it's going to be … and you come by to bring me some lunch. Thank you, by the way. And you hear something that … bothers you. What is spinning around in that genius brain of yours, huh?"

"I should go. Let you get back to what you were doing."

She turned toward the door.

He didn't move. "Bones," he called to her gently. "Don't go."

She stopped and turned back toward him. Her eyes were searching his.

"Talk to me, Bones … open … honest … talk to me … what's going on?"

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

**A/N:** Sorry, really wanted to get the discussion out in this next chapter, but I think it was more important to give you all some perspective on Booth's state of mind re: the blonde one (aka She Who Shall Not Be Named). I'm sure I haven't said it this time around, but your comments, alerts and favorites really brighten my day. Promise, the discussion between Booth and Brennan about Booth/Hannah, Hannah vs. Brennan will be up next and posted no later than Friday AM. I asked this of a friend, so I will ask you: Do you need a knock down drag out fight to have great make-up sex? Do you need to shower first?


	14. Chapter 14

**That's Why I'm Here**

By LizD

Written July 2011

**Chapter Fourteen**

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

Booth was cleaning all morning. Booth liked the manual labor for a change and he was really enjoying the idea of having Brennan over that night with no other agenda - no work, no drama, just the two of them, some good food and wine and lots and lots of privacy. He had taken his name off the rotation so unless Jimmy Hoffa's remains were discovered, no one would bother them. Nothing - and no one - was going to ruin that night. There were elements of the bizarre - this was Brennan he was planning a romantic night for - his partner, his friend, the woman who took literal to an exponentially nth degree (redundant, he knew), but yet he wasn't thinking about her as Dr. Brennan, Super Squint. He was thinking of her as a woman. Should he stop calling her Bones? Temperance? Tempe? Honey? Sweetheart? Babycakes? Lamp Chop? Definitely not Lamp Chop. She was Bones. He liked thinking of her that way; he liked thinking about her as his lover. He liked even more thinking that they would be lovers again in a few short hours.

Seduction. None of the old Booth moves would work on her; in fact no moves at all would work. But still there were some staples of seduction that couldn't and shouldn't be overlooked. All the senses needed to be assaulted. No, assaulted was too harsh - they needed to be massaged. Taste was already in the works - the guy at the wine shop had helped him in the past and the bakery in Georgetown made a chocolate dessert thing to die for - literally (Brennan would like that). Sight - well that would be his sparkling clean house with candles and low lights. Scent - hmm ... he had a new cologne that he really liked and he had already ordered the flowers. Her favorites didn't smell, so roses and lilies would have to do. Touch - well that was obvious, but he still was planning on wearing silk and the sheets were one thousand thread count - they may never get out of bed. Sound ... Hmmm ... that would take some serious thinking. What should be on the playlist? There were a number of songs which reminded him of her over the years that were never appropriate to share with her before. He laughed at himself when he downloaded Thomas Dolby's_** She Blinded Me With Science - **_so many years ago. Brennan? Poetry in motion? Yep. And now he had firsthand knowledge of that. As for the rest of his playlist - the one dedicated to her - she would probably not hear the lyrics or realize their meaning. Brennan wasn't like that. She liked the music of music not the lyrics. It was amazing to think of all the things he was going to get to introduce her to: baseball, football, hockey, music, pop culture, food. He was going to open a world to her and if he were a betting man (which he was not), he would have bet that she would open up a world to him as well.

His stomach growled. "Man cannot live on love alone," he said. It was time for lunch. No food in the house and no time to run out. Delivery!

**x|x x|x x|x**

Brennan tried to listen to Angela's advice, but her mind kept returning to her doubts. This was why Brennan didn't like emotional entanglements. It was impossible to quantify; there were too many variables. She did trust Booth but that didn't assuage her fears. More evidence was needed. So she broke free from the lab around midday and decided that she would bring Booth some lunch. She stopped by his favorite sandwich shop. It was out of the way, but he never stopped talking about it. She liked that she was doing something very small, very domestic for him and she knew he would appreciate it. Booth did like the simple pleasures in life. When she observed that to him once he got very defensive. He assumed she was calling him simple, but that was not the case. She was impressed, inspired and truly envious of the way Booth enjoyed himself. She wasn't like that; Brennan found little joy in life and only really got animated when there was some esoteric intellectual discovery. For sheer quantity of joy, Booth would always be ahead and Brennan was starting to believe that that was a better way to approach life. Maybe he would rub off on her. She hoped he would - right now his joy, his happiness was preoccupying her.

Speaking of joy ... when she got to Booth's apartment she heard the music from the street - it helped that all his windows were open. As she climbed the stairs she heard him singing along with the music. He sounded so happy - if a little off key. The song was something her parents used to play but couldn't place the artist which might have been because Booth's voice was nearly drowning it out.

She walked into the apartment as the door was wide open and saw the mess in the living room. There were boxes and bags on the floor, on the couch and in the chair. Some were filled with clothes others linens and other household items. On top of one of the boxes she saw a couple of blouses and a pair of heels. She recognized them right away; Hannah had worn them. There was no reason for it, but Brennan was unnerved by the memory of Hannah living with Booth in that apartment.

The lyrics of the song crept into her mind and sent it spinning in a direction that she couldn't control.

_**And if you can't be with the one you love, honey  
>Love the one you're with, Love the one you're with ...<strong>_

_**Don't be angry - don't be sad  
>Don't sit crying over good times you've had<br>There's a girl right next to you  
>And she's just waiting for something to do ...<strong>_

_**And if you can't be with the one you love, honey  
>Love the one you're with...<strong>_ _**Love the one you're with...**_

_**Love the one you're with...**_ _**Love the one you're with...**_

A pain gripped her and she wished she hadn't have come and would have left immediately but the music stopped. She looked up and saw Booth standing by the iPod dock. She wanted to melt into the wallpaper and Booth didn't have wallpaper.

"Hey Bones," he said joyfully. He pulled the bandanna off his head and dropped it and the rubber gloves down on the kitchen floor.

She looked stunned.

"Bones!" Booth called to her. She saw him but didn't respond. He saw the bag in her hand. "Is that for me?" He nodded to it because it didn't seem that she understood what he was talking about.

She looked down and was almost surprised to see that she was holding something. She handed it to him.

"What's that they say about great minds thinking a like? I was just about to call for some lunch." He pulled out the sandwich and the chips and took a bite hungrily. "Thanks, Bones. I'd kiss you but I'm filthy." He pushed the box that held Hannah's items on to the floor to make a place for her to sit. "Have a seat." He leaned on the arm of the couch. "Did you bring yourself anything or are we sharing this?" He took another big bite. 

"Do you believe that?" she asked without moving to sit.

"What?" he said with a mouthful.

"That you should love the one you're with."

"What?" He was at a total loss. "What are you talking about?"

"The song ... the one that was just playing ... the one you were singing along with quite boisterously."

"I don't understand." She nodded for him to turn on the music again. He did and Stephen Stills came blaring out of the speakers again. He turned it off. "It's just a song, Bones. It's not my theme song." He took another bite.

"It seems like a philosophy that you live by."

He nearly choked on the sandwich. "What?" he said with more annoyance. "_**I Drink Alone**_ by George Thoroughgood was on just before that. Is that my _philosophy_ too?"

Brennan's eyes darted to the half empty beer bottle on the coffee table. Booth had opened it about an hour ago when he was cleaning out the fridge - he didn't want it to go to waste.

"It's a beer!" he protested. "OK. Bad example," he admitted. "It's just a song, Bones. What're you getting at?"

She nodded to the box on the floor that had Hannah's belongings in it. Booth didn't realize they were Hannah's clothes. He didn't recognize them and to be honest he didn't clean his closets out much in the past ten years, they could have been anyone's. More women than Hannah had spent the night and used his closet in the past decade including Brennan.

"I don't understand." He took a hit from his beer. EW - warm.

"Am I the consolation prize?" she asked.

"What?" He stood up and dropped the sandwich on the table and slammed the bottle down a little too loudly. "How can you say that? How can you even think that? Bones, what the hell, huh? Where's this coming from?" Under his breath he added, "And I was in a good mood."

"You're angry," she pronounced.

"I'm not angry," he shouted. He paused and took the tone out of his voice. "I'm not angry," he repeated through gritted teeth. "I'm not. I'm happy." He forced a grin that was far from encouraging.

"You appear to be very angry." She launched into all the physical markers of anger but Booth cut her off.

"OK … stop. Just stop." He leaned down onto the arm of the couch. "Let's rewind here, OK?" She stood motionless and silent. "I'm here, cleaning my ass off and listening to some good time old rock and roll. I'm getting ready for tonight … a night I'm really looking forward to, by the way and you should be too. So you come by to bring me some lunch. Thank you, I really needed it. And some random song makes you ... what? I don't know what. What's spinning around in that genius brain of yours, huh?"

He was still angry, she could tell. She shouldn't have started this conversation. "I should go." She turned toward the door.

He didn't move. "Bones," he called to her gently but sternly. "Don't go." He wasn't going to stop her or chase after her, but he asked her to stay. It was a simple request.

She stopped and turned back toward him. Her eyes were searching his.

"Talk to me, Bones … open … honest … talk to me … what's going on?"

Brennan took a deep breath. She had gone to see him, to assess him; she hadn't planned on talking or sharing her concerns. She nodded to the beer. "Do you have another one of those?"

"Yeah, sure." He went to the kitchen to get her a beer and a cold one for himself. He washed his hands, threw some water on his face, and pushed his wet hands through his hair. This was going to be a discussion. The mood he was in moments before was gone. He had yet to determine what his new mood would be but there was a better than even chance that the night was ruined. He was not happy about that. He returned with the beers. "Half a sandwich?" He nodded to the table.

"I got that for you," she said taking a long hit from the beer. It was her polite way of saying that she didn't eat turkey on rye with mustard.

"Sit?"

"I'll stand."

He folded his arms across his chest and braced for the encounter. "What's going on, Bones?"

"You don't appear to be open for this conversation."

"It was not on my list of things to do today," he snapped. "But apparently my plans have just gotten blown out of the water – so I've been freed up."

"You're annoyed."

"No ... well, yes ... a little." He took a hit off his beer. "Been working my ass of today thinking about you." He snorted a laugh. "I was in a good mood."

"You don't appear to be in a good mood."

"Should have been here twenty minutes ago, Three Dog Night was doing _**Joy to the World**_." He was a little too sarcastic and he made a mental note to check that. "Why all this interest in my mood and my music?"

She nodded to the box of clothes on the floor. He didn't get the connection. She went on, "You appeared to be happier when you were with … before … with Hannah."

The hackles on Booth's neck went up. He knew that she would eventually bring Hannah back up, but he was still trying to avoid it. He had made his peace about Hannah months ago - with her and in his own mind. He was OK with the mistakes he made; he just didn't want to have to lay himself open for ridicule from Brennan or - god forbid - Sweets. Frankly it was embarrassing to think that he was so easily led and misled. Booth had a loud enough Super Ego, he didn't need the voices of the people in his life to sing along. "So what?"

She paused sorry that she started the conversation. "What do we do about it?"

"Well, we've got at a least a couple of ways to handle this. We could ignore it. I'll go back to cleaning. You go home, put whatever you are thinking out of your mind, come back at seven and we'll have a great evening. – No harm, no foul."

She didn't react.

"Naive, I know, but I thought I'd give it a shot." He unfolded his arms. "Or we could put tonight on hold and talk this out." He paused for half a beat; he hated that idea too. "But be forewarned, if we are going to talk it all out it means more than Hannah or my mood."

"I don't understand."

"If we are going to talk about what happened between me and Hannah and how that relates to me and you, we have to talk about us too - the old us, not the new us."

"Oh." Her face sunk and her stomach clenched.

He held up his hands defensively. "Hey, I'm willing to put the whole thing aside and start from here – FRESH."

"That doesn't sound practical."

"No, probably not." He pushed a hand through his hair. "Are you having second thoughts about being with me?"

"For my part ... no."

"What does that mean, 'for my part'?"

"It means that I'm clear in my mind that I want to ... I want to be in a romantic relationship with you as well as be your professional partner," she stated.

"But you think ... what?" he barked.

"I think that Hannah made you happy and that I seem to frustrate and annoy you … I have since we came back."

"Bones, you've challenged me since the moment we met, what's your point?"

"You're annoyed," she said again.

"We passed annoyed a few minutes ago." His cheeks were flushed red and he felt his neck get hot.

She stayed silent. She wanted to run, but decided that since she started it, she would need to stay through the end - where ever the end might be.

He waited for as long as he could but had to fill in the blanks for her. "So you think that I'm settling for you?" Her question about the consolation prize was still echoing in his mind and he knew where it came from. He could kick himself for the way he acted that night for a number of reasons not the least of which was the end result with Hannah. "So you think that I'm loving the one I am with?"

"It's a valid concern, Booth," she protested. "Less than three months ago you were in love enough with Hannah to ask her to marry you and you wanted nothing from me beyond a partnership - a professional partnership. You didn't even want to be my friend. You wouldn't make the kind of request lightly or without a great deal of thought."

Her assessment of him missed the mark by a mile and that sent a surge of rage down his spine mostly because she would have been right two years ago. His hands balled up into fists and his eyes grew dark. "Do you honestly believe that I'm so fickle that my interests in women change with the weather? Or do you think that I am so tired of being alone that I will go with anyone who says yes to me? Do you imagine that you are protecting me from myself - again? Or do you want to be prepared for time when my head is turned by the next pretty face?"

"You're angry," she pronounced.

"Damn right, I'm angry!" He stood up. "I never would have been with Hannah; I never would have met her if you accepted me."

She took a step back and that made him angrier.

"All I asked for was a chance, Bones - just a chance - that's all. I know you. I know you don't like change. I wasn't asking you to change your world - though I would have moved heaven and earth for you. I just wanted a chance and you couldn't give me that." He paced behind the couch. "After everything we had been through together you couldn't see your way to trusting me enough to risk ... hell there was no risk. I wouldn't have let you down. But no ... you couldn't do it. Instead you turn me down with some ridiculous excuse that you were protecting me." He paused but she didn't respond so he raged on. "Worse than that - you pleaded with me to remain partners - to hell with what I was feeling; that my heart had been ... What do you say? A heart can't be broken it can only be crushed - well my heart was squashed like a grape. But I agreed anyway; I give you anything and everything you ask for - but that wasn't enough either. So you ran away to the other side of the world and drop kicked me to the curb - not just me - our partnership and everything we've worked for. For seven months - hell it would have been the whole year, or more if Caroline didn't call us back. For seven months I don't get so much as a postcard from you. The Jeffersonian team gets disbanded all because you had to run away - and for what? To come back and start again - status quo?" Brennan remained silent which only egged Booth on. "I couldn't believe that you expected to pick up like the time, the distance, the dead silence between us for all that time was nothing. I think you even commented that you thought that we would get together then. How did you think that would work, Bones, huh? You don't speak to me for months - did you think I would just be sitting here waiting for you? Pining away, hoping that you might deign to notice me, talk to me, take a damn interest in whether or not I was alive or dead? What did you expect me to do? Fall at you feet and be grateful for your notice? God, you must think I'm a total sap."

"No," she protested weakly.

He paused in his tirade and noticed that Brennan was taking it with her shoulders back and her head up - like she deserved it - but the tears welling up in her eyes snapped him out of his rage. He stepped toward her and she inadvertently stepped back. That subtle move snapped him out of his rage; he had seen his mother do it too many times to count with his father. She was afraid of him; Brennan was afraid of his anger - or so he imagined. He was turning into his father.

"Bones," he called to her reaching for her. "Bones, I'm sorry. I'm sorry," he pleaded. "I don't know where that came from. Please, I'm sorry."

"No ... no, you're right. Everything you said ... is true."

"No it's not," he pleaded. "I'm sorry. That was completely uncalled for."

"Don't," she stated. "I deserved that – and more. I don't deserve to have you in my life."

"Bones, stop. You didn't deserve anything like that," he said gently. "I'm sorry. It's my fault - "

"Don't treat me like a child!" she snapped. "I may be inexperienced with interpersonal relationships and I make a lot of mistakes trying to do the right thing, but I am not a child." She stepped away from him. "You should have told me all this a long time ago. You should have told me how you felt instead of letting it fester."

She had a point but not a good one. "There are some things you just can't tell another person," he said. "You can't make someone love you."

She turned and looked at him straight on. "Are you implying that I didn't love you?"

"What else was I supposed to think?"

"You were supposed to believe the words I was saying," she stated.

He almost laughed. "I did. You said a hundred times that we were not in love."

"I was repeating an understanding we had between us. If it was untrue for you, you should have said something."

"By that logic, it was true for you – or you would have said something."

Point Booth. "Every time it was brought up by Sweets or anyone else, you were the first to deny the possibility of deeper connection," she protested. "Not once did you challenge my assumption. Not once did you disagree with me."

"I did ... once," he said evenly. "And I was denied."

She wiped at her eyes. "I know I made a mistake that night. I know it was unfair to ask you to continue to be partners with me. I know that the decisions I made after that set a whole series of events in motion that destroyed my world and had ripple effects on many other people."

"Yeah, I found myself back in a war zone - a place I never wanted to be again - as you well know. It nearly destroyed me the first time."

"I won't own that, Booth," she threw back at him. "It was your choice to go back into the army. I made a choice for myself. I am allowed to do that. And you made a choice for yourself ... you made several of them - as did Angela and Hodgins, Dr. Saroyan and the rest of the interns. I did not expect the medico-legal lab at the Jeffersonian to fold in my absence. I am one person - we were a team - one person leaving the team should not have destroyed it. I should have been replaced. There were a number of other forensic scientists that would have done a credible job."

He was about to point out that she was the best and that she was the cog in the wheel. It was reasonable to expect that the wheel would go flying apart with her gone, but she was right. He could have stayed and done his job. Angela and Hodgins could have stayed and done theirs. Their choice to go to Paris was due to both Booth and Brennan leaving. Cam could hardly be expected to run the department as efficiently as it was with four members of the team gone. He was just as responsible for what happened to the lab and their unit as she was. "You're right," he said evenly.

She paused to regain her train of thought. "I had to go, Booth. I was terrified all the time, Booth. Five years of working with serial killers and murders had finally broken me - broke through that wall I had built around myself. Heather Taffet nearly got away with murder, kidnapping ... torture. If she had had not been convicted I don't know what I would have done. She would have come after you, me, everyone. I honestly think I could have planned and executed her murder - Hodgins would have helped. It scared me. I was losing focus. I was losing my objectivity. I was becoming ineffective at my job. And -."

"And what?" he asked knowing that there was more and it was about him.

"And I was terrified of losing you. Of not being able to protect you. Of you dying - being killed and not being able to save you."

"So you ran away?" It was as ridiculous a notion.

"I didn't run. I tactically retreated. I had to. I couldn't do my job." Her voice cracked, her face flushed and her eyes were wet. "I couldn't be the partner you deserved and I couldn't be the cause of your death. Your life was more important than our partnership. It was more important that you live."

"I like the living part too … but -." The irony of allowing him to go to a war zone to protect his life was just too absurd for him to comment on, but in some twisted Brennan logic it made sense to her. "Let's take a breath here, OK?"

He sat down on the couch and motioned for her to join him. She hesitated but came over and sat with him after a moment. He took her hand and brushed some hair off her face. He smiled weakly at her and took the liberty of kissing her lightly on the lips. He remembered the pain in her eyes the night she left the Founding Fathers after Taffet was convicted. He knew she was affected and he knew that she was about to make a decision that would break them. He never should have let her go home alone that night, but that was all water over the bridge. "You came back determined to work with me again," he stated. She nodded. "What changed?" He wanted to know what seven months of solitude had done to change her mind.

"What we do is important," she said simply. "And I don't trust anyone else to have your back the way I can."

He snorted a laugh. "No, no ... you are unique."

"I also realized how much you mean to me." She turned away slightly. "I knew it as soon as I boarded the plane, but -."

"But what?"

"I didn't know how to come back? I didn't know how to contact you - not literally of course - but I didn't know ..."

"How to say you made a mistake?" he offered.

"Yes."

"A lot of that going around," he joked. "So we apologize for past mistakes and move on?"

"I'm sorry," she said sincerely.

"Yeah, me too." He pulled her into an embrace which she allowed even though he stunk. "So, we are good?" he asked.

She shook her head. There was more to discuss.

"Hannah," he said reluctantly. She nodded. "You know the old adage that ignorance is bliss?"

"Booth, you are not ignorant."

"Evidence to the contrary, Bones." He took a deep breath and let it out slowly. "Can it be enough to say that I thought the relationship with Hannah meant one thing, and she didn't see it that way at all and when push finally came to shove, it ended." He paused. "It was doomed to end from the beginning."

"If I cared about Hannah, maybe. My concern is you."

"And I don't suppose you will accept that I made a colossal mistake with Hannah."

Brennan shook her head implying that Booth didn't make colossal mistakes.

"You think too highly of me." He paused for a moment. "Ok here it is … I did love, Hannah. DID … in the past. I got over it when I realized it was all made up in my head."

"You don't believe that."

"What I believe is that Hannah and I didn't speak the same language." He held up his hand. "And before you get too literal and point out that we both spoke the King's English - our definition for some of the really important words was not the same. She didn't love me the way … She didn't love me. It was all just fun and games for her - unfortunately I was the one who lost an eye." He stole a look at her. "Not literally."

"You were going to say that she didn't love you the way you loved her." He shrugged a not. "That is the important point here, Booth."

"No Bones, what is important is that it wasn't real … you can't love something that doesn't exist. That's a fantasy. I don't live in a fantasy world. I live in reality."

Brennan didn't like that idea either.

"When I met her I was in a really bad way. Away from Parker, away from home, in a war zone … and with a …"

"A broken heart," she offered.

"I don't want to say this to hurt you, but the proverbial straw that broke the camel's back was your silence. I could take anything from you but your silence."

"I normally don't write to you when I'm at a dig," she defended.

"No, normally you don't. Normally because you are only gone for six weeks or less and it would take that long for a letter to get back, and often you didn't have a satellite connection. But things were different this time … what we left behind, where we were going and what was supposed to be here when we got back – it was all different that time." He paused to be sure she was listening. "And you know it."

She nodded. "It was different."

"We'll get back to why you didn't write to me later, but first let's put Hannah to bed." He stole a look at her. "Poor choice of words, sorry."

"Booth, you don't have to explain your choice of Hannah. I understand that I was given an opportunity that I turned down and you had every right to move on. You don't have to justify your relationship with her. I understand that I don't get to have an opinion about who you have sex with."

"That was true up until the point you said you loved me and we started a relationship of our own."

"Ok … so hence forward I get to have an opinion, but it's not retroactive."

He smiled. "Then what do you want to know?"

"Ultimately … why you want to be with me."

"Bones, are you kidding me? You're an incredible woman."

"We don't have fun."

"I won't own that. I think we have a version of fun." He considered pursuing that line and changed his mind. "Look Bones, we need to give ourselves a little break here. It's been just over a week and we are still reeling from Vincent's death. We are trying to put a serial killer in jail and frankly, neither one of us has gotten a good night's sleep in a long time."

"You were happy when you were with Hannah."

"What makes you think I'm not happy now?"

She shrugged. "You smiled more," she offered.

"Do you want me to walk around grinning like an idiot all the time?"

"You did when you were with her."

Booth didn't know how to fight this fight or win it. She was right, Booth was happy when he was with Hannah, but he was not unhappy with Brennan. "Hannah was easy," he said with disdain.

"Are you saying that I am hard?"

"You ... you have more substance and are much more serious." He held up his hand. "It's not a bad thing. It is a great thing, but you must admit you don't laugh as much as a lot of people."

She thought about that for a moment.

"You can learn ... and I would be very happy to be your guide." He reached for her hand and pressed it. "Bones, I love you. I want to make a life with you." He looked away. "I promised myself I wouldn't say that, but it's true. I don't want to scare you or put too much pressure on this, but I see us together in the end. I don't know what we will look like." He laughed. "Not literally, and I don't know what kind of relationship we'll have, but I know we will be together - as friends, lovers, companions ... who knows. But I'm pretty comfortable knowing that you and I will meet what comes at us head on and be there for each other until it is over."

"I don't know that - you can't know that."

"You don't have to know it. You don't even have to feel it. One day at a time. Do you see us together today?"

She nodded.

"And tomorrow?"

"Yes."

"Then we're on our way."

"So I'm not a rebound relationship for you - a relationship by its very nature doomed to fail?"

"We're not going to fail," he asserted. "Rebound? Where are you getting this stuff?"

"The internet. It's a wealth of knowledge."

"Don't believe everything you read on Wikipedia, Ok Bones?" He looked her in the eyes. "But you can believe me when I tell you this: I love you. I have never stopped loving you. I stopped hoping for more just because I had to. I made some mistakes trying to get passed my feelings and I often treated you badly. For that I am profoundly sorry. But you - we are not a rebound anything. What we are is lucky. We have been given a second chance. So many people in the world never get their first chance and we have been lucky enough to have been given two."

"I don't believe in luck," she stated. "If I believe that I am not a consolation prize or a rebound choice for you -."

He bristled, but maintained. "Believe it."

"Then I have to believe that we made this opportunity happen - which I like. I made a decision while I was in Maluku that I was not going to run away any more. I wasn't expecting you to have fallen in love, but it was more important that we were friends ... good friends ... and I tried to be the best friend I could be and support you in everything you do."

"You were ... you are ... truly the best friend I have ever known." He hesitated. "We are more than friends, Bones."

"We are."

"More than partners."

"Yes."

"I'm with you because this is exactly where I want to be and I'm happy." He took her hand in both of his. "This is real, Bones. Trust me. This is real. Don't doubt me. And we may not laugh twenty-four/seven, but we are made of stronger stuff. Our relationship has stood the test of time - and so many other tests."

She nodded.

He pulled her hand to his lips and kissed it tenderly. "Are we good?"

"Yes."

Booth looked over at one of his number of antique clocks. "Unfortunately I've lost too much time and I won't be able to make you the dinner I wanted to. However ... I'd be happy to take you to dinner instead."

"A consolation prize," she said with a sly smile.

"A joke, huh?" He pushed her down on the couch and nuzzled her neck making her giggle and squirm. "Very funny, Dr. Brennan. Do you like that?"

She pushed him up off of her. "Booth!"

He smiled. "You like that working man smell, don't you?" He leaned down and rubbed his three day growth on her jaw. "You like that too, huh? Rugged. Manly." He kissed her and she kissed him back. An idea came to Booth. Well two ideas ... actually it was one solution to two issues. He stood up and pulled her to standing too. "With me, Dr. Brennan." He led her toward the bathroom.

"Booth?" She was confused. "Are we going to bathe together?"

"OH ... a bath?" he said excitedly. "I was thinking shower, but a bath would be so much more fun. Good idea, Bones."

"I read about it on the internet ... but there should be candles and music ... and lots of clean towels because the bathroom floor will get very wet."

"What website are you login on to?" He laughed. "And I think we'll skip the music for the moment until I can vet my playlist."

"There is usually wine and bubbles ... typically an absurd amount of bubbles."

He let go of her hand. "Bubbles on the shelf next to the sink," he instructed. "I'll get the wine ... you start the water running. Not too hot." He pulled a couple bottles out of the wine rack deciding which one he wanted. "What else does your website tell you?" She didn't respond, but he heard the water running. He picked his bottle and uncorked it. "Bones?" He grabbed a couple of glasses, kicked the front door closed and locked it. "Bones?"

"It says that you should never go into the water alone," she said from the doorway in a very low seductive voice.

Booth's teeth nearly fell out of his head. She had struck a pose in the door way that accentuated every God given curve of her form; of course she was naked as the day she was born with the exception of a froth of bubbles placed in strategic locations.

Booth grinned like a fool. She was playing with him and he loved it. He slid up next to her and slunk and arm around her waist. He pulled her close and kissed her soundly. "Need someone to wash your back?"

"Was hoping for the front."

Laughing he informed her that he was her man to which she agreed. He led her back toward the tub.

"Booth? Is this considered make up sex?"

"It's making up for something."

Sloshing and splashing ... laughing and sighing ...

Fade to Wet ...

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**


	15. Chapter 15

**That's Why I'm Here**

By LizD

Written August 2011

**A/N:** Thank you all for the great reaction to this piece of FanFixtion; it is enormously appreciated. I didn't imagine when I started this fix that it would go all summer long. I feel that I need a few more chapters to do this story justice, the kind of justice that I would have liked for the actual show but was denied. I shouldn't fault them too much; they have given us great characters that we can imagine in many different ways even if they can't. We don't have to take what we are fed and be satisfied that that is all there is. I'm sure you all agree or else you wouldn't have sought out FanFixtion in the first place, no? So, anyway, I had a bit of a break from one reality and took a mini-vacation this week, but I'm back now and hope to be bring this to a good resolution in short order. Please stay with me.

**Chapter Fifteen**

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

Booth woke in love … and a bit sore.

The preceding twenty-four hours had been very ... active and it wasn't yet dawn. To think - he might have missed the B&B experience if different paths were taken, if different choices were made, if different answers were given, if forgiveness wasn't requested and granted. What was he thinking? Difference paths were taken, choices made and answers given. Maybe it took those other paths, choices and answers – and the forgiveness - to get to where they were at that moment in their lives. Was this the fate that he believed in? Why wouldn't it be? Why does fate have to be one path? Why does fate have to be a straight road? Why can't fate take a person on a journey that was never imagined, yet end in the same place? Isn't it all about the journey? It was fate that brought them together; he still believed that. He believed it all the more that morning. It certainly wasn't luck, happenstance or lack of other options. Forces greater than they, were at work – they had to be. Brennan would disagree but that was OK. Booth didn't need her to agree, acknowledge or admit to anything. He believed enough for the both of them.

Her fingers were laced through his keeping them connected. Very gently he rolled over to see her in the early morning light. Brennan lay across his bed on her stomach. Her breathing was even and slow; she looked content. He didn't want to disturb her. He relished the view: not a stitch of cloth covered her body only her hair tousled about her face and shoulders obstructed his view of her entire form. She was tone and tan and smooth and round. She was the most beautiful creature he had ever known – known in more than the biblical sense and beautiful being so much more than skin deep. She was still Dr. Temperance Brennan; literal and precise, but more than that, she was fun. They actually played together. They laughed and kissed and made violently passionate love. They talked and were silent and were intimate; truly profoundly, extraordinarily intimate. That was new for both of them.

If Booth were cross-examined at that very moment he would have no words to describe what he was thinking or feeling, but the smile on his face, the light in his eyes would give it all away. He was happy - perhaps for the first time in his life - he was utterly happy. More than happy, he felt his future. He couldn't see it to describe it in words, but he felt it was there ready and waiting for him to walk into it. Nothing would get in his way.

_**Am I the consolation prize?**_

No … not a consolation; not a prize at all. Brennan was a gift to him – a gift he earned and would honor, treasure and continue to earn for the rest of his days and nights. God help him!

Consolation prize – bah!

How could he have known? How could he have guessed? How could he have been so wrong? Six months prior he had stated that he was happy, in love and it was real with someone other than her. What a fool! What a blithering, blathering, bumbling idiot! It was not all his fault. How was he to know the heights of love that could be reached? He couldn't, but he did now. There was no going back - there was only future for him, for them - and the future was bright.

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

Brennan felt him wake and turn toward her. She pressed her fingers into his and sighed softly. With the fingertips of his free hand he gently traced the contours of her back; he was rewarded with a moan. He placed feathery kisses down her spine.

"You're insatiable," she breathed.

"I'm thoroughly sated," he whispered in her ear and sucked her lobe between his lips causing her to groan and squirm into him. He had discovered many of her special zones in the preceding hours and committed each one to memory.

She rolled over in his arms and kissed him before slipping from the bed.

"Where are you going?" he asked feeling naked and exposed by her loss.

"Water," she explained. "We need to stay hydrated."

Booth felt like he had just run a marathon, but he had no desire to rest. He pulled on his shorts and grabbed a shirt for her and followed her to the kitchen. He slipped the shirt around her shoulders to protect her from the prying eyes of his neighbors and kissed her neck. "We need food too." He said looking in the near empty bags of take out Italian they had ordered the night before. "Man cannot live on love alone."

She turned toward him about to drop into some scientific explanation of how long the body could survive without food and water, but she lost her train of thought when her eyes met his. She couldn't find the words and she forgot what she was trying to say. Her smile broadened.

"What?" he asked offering her a taste of stale rosemary bread.

"I'm in love," she stated simply, proudly and decisively.

Laughing he asked, "How do you know?"

"Because I feel like I've been drugged." She leaned into him forcing him to wrap her up in his arms.

He looked a little disappointed. "So just a chemical reaction to ..."

"No ... I mean, I don't know ... I don't care ... I don't ever want it to stop. This is better than any drug I have ever experienced ... and I have experienced a few." She put her arms around his neck. "I feel great ... I've never felt this way before." She studied him for a moment. "I'm in love. I'm in love with you," she repeated. "I love you."

"I love you, too."

"I understand now." He puzzled a look at her. "I understand why people say they can't describe this feeling. Why it is sought out. Why poets try but fall short. Why musicians try to capture it in song. Why loss of love is devastating." Her face washed with concern. "How long does it last?"

He pulled her close. It was a joy to him to see her so excited. "That's up to us."

"Can we control it?"

He had no idea if they could or not. His past experience hadn't prepared him for Temperance Brennan; this was all new to him too. "I hope so."

She kissed him, grabbed the water and led him back to the bedroom. Food would have to wait.

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

The sun was high in the sky the next time they woke this time to the sound of her phone; neither moved to retrieve it preferring to stay comfortably ensconced in the other's arms.

"Someone has been blowing up your cell all night," he whispered softly into her ear.

"Blowing up?"

"Calling you ... it's an expression."

She curled into him still making no move to retrieve her phone. "I'm busy." She kissed his neck and snuggled into him.

"You don't want to know who is trying so desperately to reach you?"

"No."

If it were possible, Booth's chest puffed up even more. He had finally gotten Brennan to put work on the back burner. Of course it was only an assumption that the call was work related. "It's Saturday ... what do you want to do?" He was a little afraid to ask thinking she might want to spend the day in bed. While he was still in pretty good shape and his libido was as strong as the next man - stronger, he wasn't eighteen any more.

"We could stay in bed," she offered. "Or we could do something with more strenuous activity."

"More strenuous?" he laughed. "You want to build an ark?"

"Couples should have many common interests to keep the relationship interesting."

"Where did you hear that? The internet?" He loved the idea that she had been researching relationships for him - for them. "I think we have a lot of common interests ... don't think we will have trouble there."

"We agree on very few things."

"We don't have to agree on everything. We agree on the most important things."

"But we are very work and task oriented," she said flatly. "There is a danger that we will ignore our personal relationship for our work relationship."

He pulled her on top of him and kissed her soundly leaving no doubt that the personal relationship would not be ignored. "Bones, what you are finding on the internet is about the majority of people - not everyone. We're special."

"So you don't think we should have other experiences besides work and sex?"

"Bones, I want to experience everything with you." He would find a different time to tell her that they were not like normal people and there was a better than even bet that they would not fall in to the same traps that other people do. They will build new and novel ones. "So what do you want to do today?"

"Climb a mountain," she stated. "There is a hike in Virginia that winds through the forest and opens up onto a lake that is very secluded. It's not an easy trail."

"Hike? Lake? That's a little granola for you, isn't it?"

"I don't know what that means, but I would like to be out in nature with you - alone. We can bring food."

"We'll have to." He laughed. "Never thought of you as a picnic kind of girl."

"You don't want to go?" She slid down next to him.

"No, no ... it sounds great." He kissed the top of her head. "It's just a little different ... you wanting to stop and smell the roses."

"I don't think there are roses on the trail."

"Just an expression, Bones."

"But there will be other flora and fauna and the air is clean so there should be no odor."

"Hiking in the woods, huh? I would never have guessed."

"I was reminded of the lake when we were out at the crime scene."

"Yeah, that was no walk in the park." He shook the memory away. "I'm just surprised. Didn't know you liked hiking. What else don't I know?"

"You know me better than anyone, Booth."

"But I don't know everything." A twinkle came to his eye. "Tell me something that I don't know."

Brennan was silent.

"Or do you still want to maintain an air of mystery around you and let me ferret out all your secrets over the next fifty years?" He kissed another one of her sweets spots and she giggled. She actually giggled. So un-Brennan-like.

"You're an excellent detective, Booth. You don't need to use a ferret. You can know anything you want to know."

"Tell me one thing ... one thing that you want me to know that you don't think I know already."

She thought for a moment. "When I kissed you ... it wasn't like kissing my brother."

Booth sat up and turned toward her. "Jeez Bones, I certainly hope not."

"I meant before ... when I said it was ...when Caroline had us kiss under the mistletoe." She had been thinking a lot about that kiss in the past week since she had so many more to compare it to. In hindsight it was very sexy - to kiss without expectation for sex and to pretend that it was less than it was, but she was glad they were past that part. "I told Caroline that kissing you was like kissing my brother," she reminded him. "It wasn't."

"Oh right ... yeah." His face spread into a broad grin. "Puckish Caroline. No, no it was not a sibling kiss."

"So you enjoyed it too?"

"Oh yeah." He settled back down on to the pillows and aligned her body with his.

"You tell me something."

"I'm an open book," Booth said a little too easily. "What do you want to know?" That was a dangerous offer too.

She pondered for a minute. "Why do you live here?"

"Huh? Live here? You mean this apartment?"

"Your FBI salary should be enough for you to afford a larger apartment in a better part of town."

Booth was a little taken aback. "Typically money is not a good subject for pillow talk."

"Pillow talk?"

"Yeah ... a conversation between lovers over a pillow."

"You want to talk about linen?"

"Never mind." He laughed. "This place is fine for me and it's in the right price range."

She paused to think about her next question. "Is your salary ..." 

"My salary is fine," he stopped her. "I'm not a big time author with advances and royalties rolling in the door, but I do OK." He paused considering how to say what he wanted to say. "I've got expenses, Bones. Not all my salary is mine."

"I don't understand. Are you in debt?" She wondered about his gambling for the first time in years. Maybe he was still paying off the debt he incurred at that time.

"A big chunk goes to Parker."

"Parker? What does an eleven year old boy need -."

"To Rebecca for child support," he interrupted her. "Kids aren't cheap. Plus I'm putting about ten percent into a college fund for him. It still won't be enough for an Ivy League education, but ever since he started coming to the lab he has been totally psyched about school. He's headed to college. He'll help with work and scholarships but I want him to be able to go wherever he wants. Of course there is always the GI Bill - it got me through."

"Booth, if you need money for Parker's tuition -."

"Bones!" He stopped her abruptly and himself from getting too aggravated with the direction of the conversation. "Parker will be fine. It's years before he will even think about college. Thank you for the offer and if I need ... well, let's cross that bridge when we come to it, OK?" He smiled at her and kissed her quickly.

"Children are an added expense."

Booth agreed.

"Booth, if we have a child, you will not be financially responsible."

"What? Of course I will." He sat up again. "Bones, I thought you wanted the father to be involved."

"This is not a general request or situation. I would like a child, yes. I would like you to be the father and I want you involved in raising the child."

"Ok then."

"But you will not need to be financially responsible."

"Let's talk about something else," he needed to get her off the topic of money and his lack of it. "How about that hike? I've got to finish up here but we could go early afternoon."

"Finish up?" She was a little confused. "You mean the housecleaning that you were doing? I don't understand why you don't have a housekeeper."

"I'm perfectly capable of cleaning my own apartment."

"It's not about ability; it's about the proper allocation of time and resources. You have a very busy schedule and it changes from week to week. If you had a housekeeper, you would not need to use your free time to clean the apartment and it would never get to the state it was in yesterday. I have a housekeeper I have been using for years. I would be happy to arrange for Andrea to come once a week or once every other week to keep your house in order."

He refused to let himself get upset. "How did we get on this subject? Isn't there anything else you want to know? Like when I knew I was in love with you? Or what I really thought of your singing?" He kissed her. "Seeing you let loose like that was incredible ... you did sing that song better than Cyndi Lauper. And for the record ... I knew I was in love with you that night."

"I thought you realized that you wanted to be with me when we met." She smiled. "Fate?"

"I knew you were going to be important in my life when we met, but seeing you sing like that ... and then seeing that woman take aim at you ... yeah that was the moment." He tried to shake the memory of that out of his mind.

"And then you let me think you were dead after I killed that woman."

"I've apologized for that."

"It wasn't your fault. Sweets was the one who chose to keep it from me. He was experimenting on us - on me."

"What?"

"It was a long time ago, Booth."

"Not that long," he stated. "Sweets' experimenting days are over."

"He will have something to say about the change in our status."

"Yeah, well ... Sweets can keep his opinions to himself."

"Isn't it his job to report on agents' mental status and report information that will protect the FBI and the agents?"

"Bones, will you continue to have my back now that you know what I look like naked?" He leaned over her and nuzzled her neck. "Or will having that information be too distracting for you," he mumbled. "I am quite a stud, you know."

With a ninja like move she flipped him over so he was on his back and she was straddling him. "Do you think so little of my imagination that you don't think I knew what you looked like naked long before now? When I was taking evidence from you when the Santa blew up?" She grinned and nibbled at his jaw. "Totally not necessary." She nipped him a little harder.

He laughed. "You vixen. And I trusted you." He rolled her over on to her back and loomed over her. "Liked what you saw, didn't you?"

"I have always responded well to your physical form, Booth. You wanted more that sex."

"Damn straight I wanted more ... and now I have it all, don't I?"

"Do you want me to say that you were right?"

"It happens so rarely."

"Yes Booth, making love - making love between two people who are in love attempts to break the laws of physics ... rather, it brings two disparate individuals and creates one entity whose gestalt is - by definition - greater than the sum its parts."

He was lost. Gestalt, what? "Just say that I was right."

She laughed. "You were right."

He kissed her and was about to do much more but her phone rang again. "OK," he rolled off of her in exasperation. "You've got to find out who that is."

"Booth," she pulled him back. "If it is work, they would be calling you too."

That idea hadn't occurred to him. He reached over to grab his phone. It had been on silent. He had missed six calls. "Damn it." He flipped it open to see who had called. "Five are from Cam."

"We have a day off," Brennan protested.

"Not anymore." He returned the call. "Cam, what's up? ... the phone was off ... Bones?" He shot her a smile. "What do you have? ... Right ... Right ... fine ... we'll be right there ... What? ... Yeah, I know where she is. I'll grab her and we'll be right there." He ended the call.

"The grabbing part is right, but I don't want to go to the lab."

"The DNA is not Scott Angel's. We have a second killer who is out there running around thinking he got off."

Brennan snapped into work mode. "If the preliminary DNA was a match, then the odds are it is a relative."

"I'll call the office and get them to start digging up everything about Angel." Brennan started to get out of bed but Booth grabbed her hand. "I'm sorry about the hike ... we'll do it another time, OK?"

"Of course."

He didn't let go. "Bones, I'm really sorry about the hike."

"I believe you." She still looked worried.

"What?"

"I enjoy our work ... let me rephrase that. I get a great deal of satisfaction from the work we do. It is important."

"OK?" 

"Right now ... I don't care who Scott Angel's partner is. I would prefer to be alone with you."

"Yeah, me too. Don't worry, Bones. We won't let work be all that we are about, OK? We need to catch this murderer and then it can just be us."

"There will always be another murderer, Booth."

"Then we have job security ... but I won't ever let work take over ... never again. I love you Bones. I'm in love with you and we have a life ahead of us, OK?"

She nodded slightly.

A flash went through him that she still didn't want what he wanted. "You know where this is going, right?"

She nodded.

He still wasn't sure. "Tell me."

She paused. She didn't want to use the M word, it was still not something she believed in. "Thirty, forty, fifty years?" she said weakly.

That was enough for Booth. "And you are on board with that?"

"Yes." She wasn't sure that she could promise that, but she believed that they would be together for many years.

"Then there is nothing in our way."

"Except the Scott Angels of the world and their accomplices."

He pulled her into an embrace and buried his face into her hair. "Trust me, Bones. Trust me."

"I do." She hugged him hard back. "Booth?"

"Yes?"

"I'm hungry."

He laughed. "Yeah, me too."


	16. Chapter 16

**That's Why I'm Here**

By LizD

Written August 2011

**Chapter Sixteen**

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

Brennan walked into the lab a little over an hour after Cam and Booth spoke. She had run home, showered, changed and went to the Jeffersonian. She still hadn't eaten. It had taken her a little while to get out of Booth's apartment - not that she was complaining. She dropped her bag and was headed directly to the cafeteria for something to eat as her blood sugar was dropping and a headache emerging.

"Sweetie," Angela called across the platform to her. She was about to yell across her next question, but decided to keep her voice down. As quickly as her pregnant legs could carry her she waddled over to Brennan. She linked her arm with Brennan's and followed along Brennan's path. Angela didn't mind going to the cafeteria - she could always use a little sumthin'-sumthin' in her condition food-wise.

"So, off the grid, huh? Booth too ... you were together, weren't you?"

"I don't know what 'off the grid' means but I was with Booth," she said evenly with almost no affect.

"You two OK?"

"We talked," Brennan evaded.

"I'll bet you did more than talk," Angela pushed.

Brennan stopped and studied her for a moment. "I don't know how much I am supposed to disclose. Too much and Booth will be uncomfortable with you or anyone having that knowledge, too little and you will keep pressing. Can we leave it at … I'm in love … with Booth."

Angela's jaw dropped open. Would she ever get use to Brennan's dispassionate way of making outlandish pronouncements about something so personal? "In love?"

"Yes, you have been professing the joys of love since the day I met you, I now understand your meaning … at least the meaning for me which I suppose is different for everyone. I find it very exhilarating."

"Exhilarating, huh?" Angela's face spread into a broad grin. "Booth too?" Angela pushed. "Is he in love?"

Brennan couldn't remember if he had said those words specifically. After letting their conversation spin through her head again she found that he did indeed say that he was in love with her in those exact words. "Yes."

Angela couldn't help herself, she pulled Brennan in to a very uncomfortable embrace - there was a third party between them.

"Dr. Brennan," Cam called to her in her most disapproving grammar school principal's voice. "May I speak with you in my office … right away please?"

Brennan was surprised by her tone and agreed, forgetting the much needed food. Angela was about to follow along assuming that it was about work but one glance from Cam stopped her in her tracks. Angela looked up to see Clark Edison, Daisy Wick and her beloved Jack all watching Brennan walk into the principal's office.

**x|x x|x x|x**

Cam let Brennan precede her and closed the door behind them. She nodded for Brennan to take the seat across from her desk and then Cam sat down in the big chair. She paused for a long moment, leaned back and folded her arms across her chest; Brennan waited her out.

"Dr. Brennan, I understand that you feel above the rules here and I have allowed it because you always put the work first." Brennan didn't choose to rebut Cam's assertion. "You have been out of communication with this office for nearly twenty-four hours. You know as well as I do that this facility is twenty-four/seven and it is our responsibility to provided the definitive information for the arrest, prosecution and ultimate conviction of murderers." Cam waited for Brennan to say something. If Brennan were anyone else, Cam would have expected an apology and a promise that it will never happen again; maybe even an excuse or explanation.

Brennan stood up without responding.

"Dr. Brennan," Cam called to her hoping to get such an apology and promise; she didn't want the explanation. "Aren't you going to say anything?"

"You have made statements that do not require a response." She continued her walk toward the door. "There is work to be done – which I believe is your point – but I require something to eat so I can concentrate on the work."

"Dr. Brennan ... it's not acceptable that you do not return phone calls for nearly twenty-four hours when we are working a case – a case I might add that is about to blow up in our faces."

"I'll assume you are speaking metaphorically … Metaphorically there is no danger of explosion." Brennan said calmly and turned away.

"Dr. Brennan!"

With her hand poised over the door handle. "Are you going to terminate my services?" she asked flatly.

"I don't want it to come to that," Cam said but clearly she would have fired her if it were in her power.

"When it does ..." Brennan left the sentence unfinished and left the office.

Cam was livid. Her face was red and she was almost shaking.

"How the hell am I supposed to run a forensic lab with a forensic anthropologist who does whatever the hell she wants to do?" she grumbled.

Just then Paul walked in. "Hey Babe ... find your scientist?" Cam shot him a look that told him all he needed to know. "Guess so. So, no excuse?"

"I didn't want an excuse," she snapped. "An apology would be too much to hope for. How about just a promise to be more conscientious?"

"Come on, Cam. This is the first time she has done something like this?"

"What are you talking about? She treats this lab and these people like that are nothing – worse – beneath her. She has taken off for weeks on end – the last time it was for a year and it destroyed the department."

"And she gave you a list of people to take her place," he reminded her.

"She didn't this time!"

"It's a Saturday. How was she to know that the DNA would not match?"

"If she had picked up her phone one of the hundred times I called …"

"This is not about Dr. Brennan being unavailable for twenty four hours," he asserted calmly. "What is really going on?"

"It is always about her. Lynchpin - my ass. People worship the ground she walks on and I don't understand why? I mean she is good – maybe the best – but not every case needs THE BEST! I could have kept this lab running just fine without her if -." She stopped her tirade realizing that it was not Brennan's fault that the Jeffersonian did not give Cam the support she needed, but she had blamed Brennan all the same.

"If they gave you the funding to do it," he said. "I think your issue is not with Dr. Brennan but with how the higher ups treat her and you. They put you in charge, not her. Maybe the need to be reminded of that. Maybe they need to be reminded that order and discipline is scientific not paramilitary."

"I have no power. No control. But I'm held responsible. I had Caroline Julian and management on my ass for the past day because I can't control the ALL GREAT AND POWERFUL Dr. Temperance Brennan."

"Aren't you being a little dramatic?"

"Dramatic?"

"Let me be the voice of reason, you got one phone call from Caroline and one from Dr. Sawyer. That is hardly the description of 'on your ass.'"

"Are you on my side or not?"

He reached for her and tried to pull her close – it was like trying to stuff a cat in a pillow case. He gave up. "I am always on your side, but I am not going to agree with you when you're overreacting."

Cam pushed him away. "This is all my fault … I never should have introduced Booth to her."

Paul leaned back on her credenza. "Booth? Is this about Booth? You don't know where they were, you can't assume -"

"They are together, Paul," she stated. "I have it from a reliable source."

"Isn't that good? Booth is happy? Brennan is happy? The pool is over. Come on, Cam. You said a year ago that you expected them to get together when they got back."

"That was before I knew … before Hannah." Cam wasn't making much sense. "She is going to break his heart. I don't know if I can stand by and watch that … that … that emotionless robot tear his heart out and stomp it to tiny pieces. I'm not sure how more he can take or how he will recover when she -."

"That is not your decision, Cam. Booth is a big boy. He can make his own mistakes – if that is what it turns out to be. Maybe it won't be a mistake."

"I suppose sending him off to a warzone proves how much she loves him."

Paul crossed his arms over his chest. "Are you still in love with him?" he asked.

Cam snapped her attention to him. "NO! I was never -"

Paul clearly didn't believe her. "I'm gonna go. I wanted to see if you were free for lunch, but you don't appear to be in a mood for company."

"Paul … please. I was never in love with Booth. But I have known him for over fifteen years. He's a friend and I don't want to see him get hurt."

"I'll call you later," he said slipping out the door before Cam could say anything else.

Cam picked up her stapler and threw it at the window. Thankfully the window remained intact but she would have to requisition a new stapler.

**x|x x|x x|x**

BLAM!

Jack and Angela turned toward the sound with a start. It had come from Cam's office.

"Lover's spat?" Angela said but not really believing it.

"Think we found the one person in the world who is not happy about Booth and Brennan."

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

Brennan was working in the bone room when her cell went off. She checked the caller ID and her face broke into an uncontrollable smile.

"Hi," she said sweetly.

"Hey yourself," he said in his low sexy voice. "What are you wearing right now?"

"My lab coat."

"Just your lab coat?" he asked playfully.

"No." She was confused. "Why are you asking?"

"It's a thing, Bones," he said. "Just roll with it."

"OK," she agreed with a smile. "What are you wearing?"

"I'll tell you what I'm not wearing," he said suggestively. "Never got the final load of laundry in the dryer yesterday."

"I don't understand."

"It was my intimates, Bones."

"Oh … commando Booth. I like it."

"Where did you hear that?"

"From you?"

"Did you eat?" He asked.

"I got something in the cafeteria."

"I've got to stop at the office quickly to get a file and check in with Caroline, but I'll bring something to you at the lab."

"I'd appreciate it."

"How much?"

"How much what?"

"How much would you appreciate it?"

Brennan was confused again. "A great deal," she offered.

"How about a kiss?"

"You could get a kiss without having to bring me food."

"Good to know, but I'll stop anyway."

"Thank you."

"See you soon," he said.

"See you soon," she repeated.

"Hey, you know what?"

"What?"

"I missed you."

"I left just over an hour ago."

"Too long … don't make any plans for tonight. We have a date."

"Will we make it out of the house this time?"

"Don't think we'll make it out of the bedroom."

"Make sure you go food shopping first … or stay at my house, I have food."

"Sounds like a plan. Gotta go. I love you."

"I know."

"Say it back, Bones. It's a thing."

"I love you," she repeated. It felt good to say and her eyes lit up.

"Good. Later." He couldn't wipe the smile off his face.

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

Booth ran into Caroline on his way in from the garage. He got an earful from her and was pretty much up to speed. Sweets was waiting in his office.

"Doesn't anyone take a day off around here?" Booth barked as he rounded his desk hoping that he would get Sweets to back off and he could keep his good mood going.

Sweets surveyed Booth for a long moment. "You don't look annoyed, Agent Booth, in spite of the words you are using."

"Sweets, use your super shrink skills and give me a profile of Scott Angel before I have to cut him loose."

"It's on your desk, agent." Sweets leaned over and picked up the file he left there the day before. It's been here since yesterday afternoon."

"I took a day off and today is Saturday? Can I have a life? For God's sake, why is everyone making a federal case out of this?"

"Because it is not your way, Agent Booth. I am wondering if we need to go back to having sessions once a week. You have been acting erratically since ... well since Vincent was killed."

"Is that why you are here? To tell me that I am acting erratically after a colleague was killed? Boy they really taught you a thing or three at the shrinker school of yours. Are you sure you took ALL the classes."

"That is a blatant defensive maneuver, agent."

"I'll show you a defensive maneuver." He pointed to the door. "Get out of my office; I need to get some work done."

"Agent, I can pull rank if I need to." Booth glared at him momentarily before referring back to the file on Angel. "Dr. Saroyan and I agree -."

"Agree about what, Sweets? I've been working my ass off for the past five months to capture a serial killer. He kills a kid I know and I am not allowed to take a day off? I have plenty of vacation time. I'm not wearing women's underwear or drowning my sorrows in the bottom of a vodka bottle."

"You don't drink vodka."

"Whatever?"

"Do you want to wear women's underwear or drown your sorrows?"

"No," he stated definitively.

Sweets watched him for a moment. "Agent Booth, in spite of your efforts to make me think otherwise, you are not angry or annoyed. I have seen you both ways. In my experience with you, I would say that you look … "

"Busy."

"Happy."

Booth looked up to blast him one more time but was distracted by a person standing behind Sweets.

"Hammer!" Booth called out moving toward him.

"Dead Eye Dick!"

Sweets turned to see a very large man standing in Booth's doorway. He was dressed in standard FBI issue suit, tie and shoes but his badge had a big V on it. Sweets watched as the men hugged – a true manly hug.

"What the hell are you doing here?" Booth asked.

"Finally got the big transfer to D.C." the man said.

"You are kidding? Really? Major crimes?"

"You know it. Earned my stripes on that serial killer case."

"Some excellent work there, Ham."

Sweets cleared his throat.

Booth turned to make introductions. "Henry 'The Hammer' Carson, this is Dr. Lance Sweets – shrink. He does a profile or two for us too."

Carson put out his shovel like hand to Sweets who saw his own puny little paw get swallowed up. "Nice to meet you," Carson said.

"Nice to meet you," Sweets pulled his hand back. "How did you get the name 'The Hammer'?"

Carson held up his fists. "Hard as iron."

"He hits like a sledgehammer," Booth explained. "Carson and I were at the academy together."

"Booth got me through the shooting range."

"And Hammer got me through hand to hand combat." Booth made a couple of boxing moves as if he were going to hit Carson. They were easily blocked. "Who'd they pair you with?"

"You," Carson said proudly. "You mean they didn't tell you. It's been coming down for over a week now. Was hoping I was going to help you bag that Broadsky guy but you just couldn't wait." Carson clapped Booth on the shoulder.

"Sorry." He wasn't. Booth turned to Sweets. "You knew about this," he accused. "This is what Agent Shaw was about."

"I recommended that it was time for you to have a proper partner," Sweets said sheepishly.

"I have a proper partner," Booth protested. "Hammer, look. Sorry. I have a partner."

"Yeah, the Bone Lady. I'm looking forward to meeting her," he said while waggling his eye brows. "Love her books and man she is hot."

"And she's taken," Booth warned.

"Taken?" Sweets asked.

"When do you start?" Booth asked Carson ignoring Sweets.

"Officially not until Monday, but I'm here now."

"Great!" Booth moved to the door. "Let me introduce you to Bones and get you up to speed on this case."

The two old friends left leaving Sweets alone again in Booth's office.

"Taken?" A smile spread across his face. "Good." He looked pretty proud of himself.

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

**A/N:** Trying to understand why Cam was such a bitch to Brennan last year. As I put myself in her shoes, seems that Cam has a number of reasons to not be in awe of Dr. Temperance "Bones" Brennan. Reoverreatcted a tad – but that's just pressure. Hope she doesn't lose her boyfriend because of it. I mean come on people – season six is over, can't we all just get along?

As for Carson, always thought Booth could use a real Bromance. Sweets is just not enough of a manly man for Booth. How much will Carson interfere with B&B partnership and down time is TBD.


	17. Chapter 17

**That's Why I'm Here**

By LizD

Written August 2011

**Chapter Seventeen**

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

Cam sunk down into her chair after cleaning up the stapler mess. It was not a good day. On her desk was Vincent's file. She needed to finish processing it and get it to HR. They had been demanding it for the last four days and Cam just couldn't bring herself to let it go. She still found herself crying at odd times of the day thinking about Vincent. Cam was not used to not having those kinds of emotions surface without being able to control them. It put her off her game.

Underneath Vincent's file was a letter from the Jeffersonian board stating that the grant she requested to continue her research on brain damage in soldiers was again rejected. She had gotten a senator to write a recommendation this time and she had sincerely expected it to go through. Not so much.

On the edge of her desk sat and unopened letter; it was post marked three days ago. The return address read: Family Court, Chicago, Ill. She knew what it was about; there was no reason to open it. Jackson Welton, Andrew's cousin and Michelle's second cousin, had been trying to gain custody of Michelle. It wasn't about her or family; it was about money. Michelle was two years away from gaining full access to the trust fund set up for her. It was Cam's responsibility to keep these "concerned" family members at bay so they didn't take advantage of Michelle. They were not making it easy. She was also trying to keep it from Michelle.

She checked her watch. She needed to catch up with Paul. Everything else would take care of its self, but Paul needed a personal apology as soon as possible. She got up from her desk quickly and a wave of dizziness nearly dropped her to the floor. She steadied herself on the desk and forced herself to take long slow breaths. It was the sixth dizzy spell she had had in a week. She would have to go see a doctor – if it happened again. She said that the last three time. When she was sure she was OK, she picked up her purse and left the office.

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

Angela walked into Brennan's office not sure what she was expecting to find. Either Brennan would be packing to go, or she would be working. No contest. She was working.

"Hey sweetie, you OK?"

"I believe the samples were contaminated so the test was skewed."

"I'm talking about your little convo with Cam."

"Dr. Saroyan?" Brennan had forgotten about the conversation she had with Cam. It took her a moment to remember. "She felt that it was important to remind me that there was an open case and that I shouldn't be out of contact with the office," Brennan said quietly still focusing on the test results.

"Kind of throws a wet blanket on the whole _**in love**_ thing, huh?"

"Dr. Saroyan has nothing to do with my feelings for Booth." Brennan looked at Angela. "Do you think my feelings are so transitory to be altered with outside influences?"

"No, sweetie. Just you were happy a minute ago."

Brennan shook her off. She wasn't unhappy now, she was working.

"She seemed pretty upset," Angela added. "Cam did." Brennan made no response as she had taken no notice of Cam's emotions. "She has a right to be," Angela went on. "Not at you," she corrected. "But she has been used, abused and throw away all through no fault of her own for the past year or more."

Brennan looked up. "What are you referring to?"

"Come on, sweetie, look at it from her point of view. You take off for Maluku, Hodgins and I take off for Paris and Booth heads back to a war zone and if that isn't bad enough, the board of directors shuts this office down."

"That was over a year ago."

"Still. Not really a vote of confidence in her ability to run the department. That just doesn't go away. You being out of contact for a day probably brought it all back up."

"Dr. Saroyan is a fine pathologist and an excellent administrator," Brennan stated. "I don't have enough information to say that she is the best, but she would have to be top tier to work here with us."

"Might want to tell her that." Angela frowned. "Might want to tell them that."

"Them who?"

"The board of directors." Brennan looked confused. "The ones that put a stuffed mastodon on our platform?" Angela waved behind her.

"It was removed."

"Yet there's still an elephant in the room," she said under her breath. "You were the one to have it removed, sweetie. Not Cam."

"I don't understand."

"Need to look at it from Cam's point of view. Without you they saw no value in keeping the lab open. That has to hurt."

"It was not my fault," Brennan protested. "I left several names with Dr. Saroyan of people who could do this job."

"No, sweetie it was not your fault, but Cam needs someone to blame."

"And I am an easy target?"

Angela thought for a moment. "All Cam sees is that they cut her funding, took her staff, moved her to a substandard facility and told her to do the same job." Brennan didn't respond. "Do you know that she was making some real head way on brain damage from improvised explosive devises - no pun intended - in spite of her work conditions? She was given no funding and no support and nearly fired to shut her up."

"Yes, I know. That was why we were called back early."

"She hasn't been allowed to pursue her research." Angela paused hoping the Brennan would make the connection that Angela wanted her to make. "You would never have let that happen."

"Let Dr. Saroyan get fired?"

"Let someone tell you to stop your research particularly when you are on to something big."

"Of course not."

"Cam doesn't have that kind of luxury. She doesn't have that kind of power." She paused again. "It would be nice if she had someone in her corner to back her, support her ... maybe even help her? Someone that could pull a few strings and not back off when the political pressure comes down hard."

"I am not concerned with politics. The truth is the truth."

Angela smiled and nodded. "My point exactly."

Brennan leaned back in her chair and remembered the night she returned to DC.

_**"What happened is you put your own desires ahead of everything else and you left," Cam scolded. "Yes, I am angry, Dr Brennan. We had a great thing going and you just… You let it fall apart."**_

"She told me it was my fault that the lab closed."

"When did she say that?"

"The night we returned."

"Aw sweetie, she was just upset about her job."

"She meant it." Brennan looked at Angela. "But she was wrong. Not one of us could do this alone. All of us are replaceable - even me - to a certain degree."

"You're right."

"I was not responsible for you or Booth leaving. I was doing what I had to do for myself."

"You're allowed."

"I think I have proven myself since we have been back."

"You have, sweetie. You have."

"So why is Dr. Saroyan still angry with me?"

"I don't know, sweetie. Maybe you need to talk to her." She smiled at her. "Woman to woman."

"There is no other way we can talk to each other."

"Try not to be so literal. Just talk to her. Say something nice to her."

Brennan looked back at the test results in front of her. "We have a case to solve."

Angela smiled. Brennan was done talking about Cam. She needed to do some processing. "Right. The case. Back to work. I'm glad we had this little talk. I'll just be going now."

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

Booth and Carson walked out of the diner where Booth had picked up some lunch for Brennan and climbed into the SUV.

"What does Rita think of the big move to DC?" Booth asked.

"She's not talking to me," Carson said solemnly. "About six months now."

"Sorry, man."

"Yeah, well teenagers ... can't live with them can't put them back where you found them." Carson looked out the window. "She can spend my money though. Doesn't need to talk to me for that. She has been living with Claudia for the past two years."

"How are you two ...?"

"She blames me for everything from the polar ice caps melting to the cancelation of _**One Life to Live**_."

"_**One Life to Live**_?"

"Soap Opera ... never mind. I'm sure she helped turning Rita with all her stories of what a rotten human being I am. I jumped at the chance to come to DC."

"So, no one else in your life."

He turned to Booth and smiled. "I do OK ... you know me ... don't like to eat alone."

"The eating part is not what got you into trouble with Claudia." They men glanced at each other and laughed. "Ok, well maybe it had something to do with it."

"So what about you ... assume you and Parker's mom never figured it out."

"No, but we are finally on good terms." Booth beamed. "And Parker is a fantastic kid."

"He's ten, right?"

"Eleven – almost twelve."

"Wait until he hits thirteen ... you'll think aliens abducted him." Booth didn't respond but took the warning and filed it away. "You got this big shit eating grin on your face, Booth. You got some babe on the hook, huh?"

"I do."

"And not that reporter chic who followed you home from Iraq?"

"Afghanistan, no and how do you know about her?"

"Donavan talks ... especially when he heard I was coming back here."

"Don't believe everything Donavan says."

"Roger that." He glanced at Booth. "It's that partner of yours, isn't it?"

"Bones ... yeah." His smile grew wider then faded a bit. "Did Donovan tell you that too?"

"No." He shook his head. "They aren't going to let you work together, you know."

"She's a consultant ... they can't say shit." Booth waved him off. "You'll need to meet her to understand. She is like no one you have ever met."

"I read some of her books ... a little too scientific for me, but some of those sex scenes were pretty hot. I suppose you were her research."

"No ... maybe in her imagination ... but probably not. We have only been together - really together - for just over a week."

"How long have you two been working together?"

"Nearly seven years."

"And you only hooked up now?"

"It was worth the wait."

"You say that now."

"I'll say it twenty years from now. Bones is the one. We almost missed our chance ... but we finally figured it out."

"Well, you look happy - and not just that freshly fucked happy either."

"Nice ... you can keep those kinds of comments to yourself, Hammer." Booth stole another look at him. "When you meet her you'll think she is not my type."

"Nothing wrong with going against type ... Claudia was my type."

"You don't have a type."

The men laughed. "I like 'em all." Carson turned to Booth. "Remember that babe from the academy?"

"Who Lydia?"

"Was her name Lydia?"

"Yes, it was ... she and I were doing great until you swooped in and -."

"Laid the hammer down," the men said in unison.

"I can't help myself, Booth. I like women."

"Hey, remember Camille Saroyan?"

"Camille Saroyan? Cam?" He nodded in approval. "She didn't like me much."

"She's chief pathologist at the Jeffersonian."

"That must be complicated."

"Not really? Cam and I were always friends even when we were sleeping together."

"What does your Bone Lady think of that ... or didn't you tell her?"

"She knows. Cam and I have been over for a long time. And Bones isn't like that." He smiled that broad smile again. "Trust me ... you have never met anyone like her."

"So, are you going to warn me to keep my hammer in my pants around her?"

Booth laughed out loud. "Bones can take care of herself. I'd say give it your best shot, but I wouldn't want you to get your feelings hurt."

"You're that confident that she wouldn't cheat on you?"

Booth didn't need to think. "Yep."

"Why?"

"Because she told me she wouldn't."

"Oh man, what happened to you. You believe what women say now?"

"Not women - just Bones."

"Right . Was she ..." Carson made a rude sexual gesture. "... when she said it?"

"Nice - real nice. You can not do that around Bones too."

"Thought she could take care of herself."

Booth shook his head and smiled. "She'll chew you and spit you out." Carson was not prepared for Temperance Brennan; Booth was sure of that. "But hey, let me tell her about the partner thing, OK?"

"Ah, so you don't have her wrapped around your little finger."

"Never said I did ... never said I wanted her wrapped around my finger. Bones is ... well, Bones is Bones."

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

Cam ran into Booth and Carson on her way out of the lab - almost literally. Booth put down his window. "Cam, where's the fire?" Booth asked.

Cam reluctantly put down her window. "Sorry Seeley. I've got some place to be."

"Look who's here?" Booth leaned back and Carson leaned forward.

"Hank?" Cam said smiling and then frowning.

"Camille!"

"Don't call me Camille."

"Don't call me Hank," he said.

"Here for a visit?"

"Transferred to DC. I'm gonna be around. Let's get a drink, catch up."

"Sounds good. I've really got to go."

"Bones in the lab?" Booth asked.

Cam's eyes grew dark. "Seeley ... do you know what you are doing?" she asked.

"What are you talking about?"

"You know what I'm talking about ... you and Dr. Brennan ... do you know what you are doing?"

"I do," he said decisively annoyed that she was questioning him.

Cam shook her head. "Try to keep it out of the office, alright?"

Booth knew something happened between Brennan and Cam. "Camille, what did you say to her?"

"I told her the same thing. Remember, she works for me."

"Don't go there, Camille. You'll lose."

The heat rising to her cheeks was clearly visible. "I know." She gunned the engine and drove away.

"What has got her panties in a knot?" Carson asked.

"Not sure ... but with Cam, it's never obvious."

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

Booth and Carson walked into the lab. Angela saw them right away - happily married and eight months pregnant and she still eyed new men.

"Yo Booth ... who's the new guy?" she cooed and tried to cock her hip out but really wasn't able to. Pregnant only allows so much sexiness.

"Angela Montenegro Hodgins, Henry Carson." Booth introduced. "Old friend of mine who just got transferred to DC." Booth clapped him on the shoulder. "You'll be seeing a lot of him."

Angela scanned him up and down. "I should hope so."

Carson smiled at her. "Pleasure to meet you," he charmed back.

Booth turned his back on Angela. "You see that she's pregnant, don't you?"

"Women are never more beautiful than when they're pregnant," he said kissing Angela's hand.

"If you find aircraft carriers beautiful."

"Where's Bones?" Booth asked.

"Her office." Angela flashed him another smile and waddled off.

"You work with these women - every day?"

"Tough job, I know."

"I'm gonna like it here," Carson licked his lips and watched Angela walk away.

"She's taken too ... in case you missed the pregnant part ... there's a husband. He works here too. And he is a friend of mine too," Booth warned.

"Rodger that." Booth led him up the stairs to Brennan's office. "What about Cam?"

"Involved." Booth entered Brennan's office. His smile softened and his eyes shined just a little bit brighter. "Hey Bones," he called to her.

She looked up immediately and smiled at him. It flickered a little when she saw that he wasn't alone.

"Bones, this is an old friend of mine from the academy who just got transferred back to DC. Henry "The Hammer" Carson, this is Dr. Temperance Brennan ... my partner." Booth was sorry he added that last bit. There was no way she was going to take working with a third person very well. And frankly he had been looking forward to getting out into the field a bit more with her than they had been. It was kind of sexy to think of them working together and not just around the lab. "He's going to be helping us on the case." Booth thought it best to warm her to the idea slowly. This case, and the next and soon she would be OK with Carson. Or not.

Carson stepped closer to Brennan's desk and extended his hand. "Very nice to meet you, Bones. Booth has told me a great deal about you."

She didn't offer her hand but stood up. "Booth has never mentioned you. We have been partners for nearly eight years." She scanned him up and down. "Don't call me Bones."

Carson immediately withdrew his hand. "Forgive my presumption."

"What special qualifications do you have that make you useful in this investigation?"

Carson shot Booth a look for help.

"He's a good investigator, Bones," Booth helped. "He just brought in a serial killer singlehandedly."

"Not singlehandedly and it would have gone much more smoothly if I had a forensic anthropologist on my team," he said trying to win her.

"Yes, I'm sure it would have." She turned her attention to Booth. "There was a second person in the car with Angel. Male relative - brother or possibly father. We are still waiting for the test results.

Booth handed her the file he had brought. "He is everything we have on Scott Angel. No brothers, and his father is in jail."

"Are you sure?" She took the file from him.

"I've got someone headed to the prison to do a visual check."

"What about a half brother," she asked reading the file forgetting all about Carson.

"Nothing so far."

"Tempe!"

They all turned to see an Indiana Jones type character all the way down to the fedora and pistol on his hip. The only thing he was missing was the whip and thirty pounds. Booth reflexively moved his jacket for easier access to his weapon.

"Tempe, I have been calling you for the past sixteen hours. Did you get my calls?" He stepped around the men and was about to step behind her desk in an all too familiar way. Brennan stopped him with a look.

Brennan didn't look embarrassed, she looked annoyed. "Dr. Stephen Tailor, Special Agent Seeley Booth and Hammer Carson. Stephen, we are in the middle of a case."

As luck would have it Hodgins dropped in. "Dr. Brennan ... Hey Booth. I found something."

Booth looked between Brennan and the interloper and decided to make a strategic retreat. "What do you have Hodgins?"

Booth escorted Carson and Hodgins outside Brennan's office but maneuvered the conversation so he could watch Brennan and Tailor talking. It was clear that Brennan was giving information to Tailor that he didn't want to have. He was more than a little annoyed. A surge went through Booth; he might actually be jealous, but he was more ready to leap to her defense. It wasn't needed. Moments later Tailor shot out of Brennan's office and didn't look at Booth. Booth suggested that Hodgins take Carson down and show him around his bugs and slime. Carson wasn't interested but went.

"Who was that?" Booth asked when he got close to her desk.

"Dr. Stephen Tailor -."

"I got his name, Bones. I want to know who he is and why he has been calling your for the past sixteen hours."

Bones straightened her spine and met Booth head on. "Dr. Tailor is an archeologist."

"That explains the Indiana Jones get up."

"I don't know what that means."

"Go on."

"He has been on a dig for the past six weeks and returned last evening which was why he was trying to contact me."

"To share his findings with you."

"No," she said decidedly. "He wanted sex."

Booth nearly choked. "Sex?"

"Yes, Stephen and I had a few sexual encounters. I assume he was looking for another one."

Booth pushed his hand through his hair. "And what did you say to him?"

"I didn't answer or return his calls."

"What did you say to him just now?"

"I told him that I was in a monogamous relationship and that we would no longer be having sex."

"What did he say to that?"

"He believed our liaison was more than sexual."

"You set him straight on that point."

"Yes, Booth." She studied him for a moment. "Are you jealous?"

"Of my girlfriend's ex-lover calling her in the middle of the night when she is in bed with me ... jealous is not really the word I would use."

"I am your girlfriend?"

"Not sure what the word is these days." Booth tried to keep his voice done.

"You have to reason to be jealous."

"I just didn't know you were … you know … I mean … I had no idea that -."

"That I was having sex?" she offered a little too crassly. "You know that I am not a virgin. I would have thought that prior experience would be preferable."

"OK … look … we are done talking about this. We each have a past and it is better left there."

She smiled at him. "OK."

"It is in the past, isn't it?"

"Yes, Booth. The reason Stephen was so upset was that I had told him that I didn't believe in monogamous relationships."

Booth stepped closer to her. "You've changed your mind about that too?"

"I have changed my mind about a lot of things?" She stepped closer to him eyeing him suggestively.

"Oh?"

"Yes … remember that thing …"

"That thing we did last night?"

"It was actually this morning …"

"Yeah … ? Decided you liked that, huh?"

"Oh yeah …" They were millimeters apart literally breathing each other's air but not touching. "With one minor alteration." She leaned in and whispered something in his ear.

Booth blushed. He actually physically flushed red and nearly whimpered. "What time are you done today?" he asked hurriedly.

"I'll need t check with Cam."

Booth leaned back. "Did she say something to you?"

"About what?"

"About us?"

"No."

"Would you tell me if she did?"

"Why wouldn't I?"

"No reason." He reached out and touched her arm. It sent a shock through to his toes; Brennan shivered as well. "So she said nothing to you."

"She was concerned that I was unavailable for a number of hours yesterday."

"I'll talk to her."

"Booth, It would be unwise of you to speak with her about our relationship. She will be forced to act as an administrator and not your friend. OK?"

He nodded.

"We are fine," she stated.

"Fine?"

She leaned in. "Better than fine."

"Good." He leaned in. "I want to kiss you right now."

"I would like that very much."

"But …" He stepped back. "Let's keep the PDA down to a minimum OK?"

"If you would feel more comfortable with that?"

He shook his head and smiled. "You know what I would be more comfortable with -."

"Booth!" Carson's booming voice resounded in the room.

Booth stepped back feeling not quite as caught as he should. "Carson, what did Hodgins find?"

Brennan stepped around Booth and passed out of the room by Carson.

"She doesn't like me," Carson said.

"That's just Bones. She takes a while to warm up to people."

"Hope it won't take seven years like it did for you two."

Booth clapped him on the shoulder. "She will never warm up that much to you, Hammer. Trust me."

Booth followed after Brennan.

"That sounds a lot like a challenge," Carson said to himself. "I like challenges."


	18. Chapter 18

**That's Why I'm Here**

By LizD

Written August 2011

**Chapter Eighteen**

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

Down on the platform Hodgins was going over with Brennan what he had just gone over with Carson. It took one sixteenth the time and words to convey the same message. Booth looked on picking up about every seventh word.

"Don't pretend you understand this stuff," Carson accused.

"Of course I do," Booth lied. "Don't you?"

"I got something about dirt on the shoes being from -."

"It's not dirt," Hodgins barked clearly not for the first time at Carson. "The term dirt doesn't have any meaning here."

"But what does it prove?" interrupted Booth.

"It proves that the boots that Scott Angel was wearing when he was picked up in California were at the crime scene in Virginia where those four girls were killed," Brennan explained. "It does not prove he was wearing them."

"That's splitting hairs," Carson claimed.

"Did we analyze hair?" Brennan looked at Hodgins.

Hodgins shook his head.

Carson looked confused.

"It's an expression, Bones." Booth looked at Carson. "She is very literal, need to watch how you phrase stuff." He looked back to his squints. "What else do we know?"

"Angel's height and weight are consistent with the foot prints also found at the scene in Virginia," Angela announced.

"But we have not IDd the other DNA found at the scene - both scenes."

"Angel had a partner?" Carson asked as if he had missed that part of the briefing but it was the third time he asked.

"Male, relative ... no ID." Brennan snapped.

Booth phone rang and he stepped away from the group.

The squints huddled up around a monitor and Carson was left standing on his own.

Booth stepped back to the group. "Great work, squints. I've gotta go." He looked at Brennan to get her to follow him away from the group toward the glass doors. She did. She waited for him to speak. I've got to go pick up Parker. Rebecca is running late."

"OK."

"Can I leave ...?" He nodded at Carson.

"Leave him here?" Booth shrugged a nod. Brennan was not pleased. "Do you have to?"

"Yeah ... I mean ..."

"You want me to get to know your friend."

"There is a little of that."

"What more is there?"

"He'll be working with us on this case."

She studied his face and knew he was holding something back. "It is more than just this case." Booth sort of nodded again. "How much more?"

"The Bureau has transferred him to be ... they think that I need ... they want ..."

"They want you to have an FBI partner rather than me and think that your old friend from the academy is a good choice. They want me in the lab and you in the field with your friend."

"Bones, it's not really like that ... I mean, it's not because he is a friend. It's because he is a good agent."

"I have no knowledge of that. I only know what kind of agent you are."

"Do you trust me?"

"Of course."

"This is just a thing. They have been letting me have you as a partner for years, you are spending more time in the lab and they don't want me out there investigating on my own. It's policy. Just like Agent Harris was with me for Broadsky. It's just back up. You want me to be safe, right?"

She recognized his twisted logic. "If you would rather have Agent Carson as your partner because -."

"You are my partner, Bones. In every way ... OK? We just have to make room for Carson too. Which means you will be working with him. Which means..."

"That I should get to know him."

"Right."

"I don't like the way he looks at me."

"What? He doesn't look at you anyway."

"He looks at me like he knows me. What have you told him?"

"That you are brilliant, amazing and taken."

"Taken?"

"Yeah, taken. As in off the market." Brennan was still confused. "It means you're my ..."

"Girlfriend?"

"It means we are together, OK? Monogamously." He grinned. "I like the sound of that."

"You put a lot of stock in that concept," she stated which he did not deny. "Why should that matter to Agent Carson?"

"Cause he is a bit of a dog ... he'll flirt with you, but it won't mean anything. That's just his way."

"Booth."

"Look, let me go get Parker and the three of us can meet for dinner at the Founding Fathers later. And then we'll send him home and it will be just you and me, OK?"

"Where does he live?"

"No clue."

"Are you going to invite him to live with you?"

"Of course not ... why would I do that?" Booth realized why she would think that. Hannah would haunt them for a little while longer. "Not the same thing, Bones. Not the same thing at all. Founding Father's at five, OK ... early dinner and then you and I can make it an early night."

"Ok." Brennan was thinking.

"You're not too disappointed, are you?"

"Is he what is known as a third wheel?"

Booth laughed. "Yeah, I suppose he is."

"Third wheels are often useless and cause more damage ..."

"I know ... but nothing is going to cause damage ... not to us, right? We're solid."

"Are we?"

He stepped closer to her and took her hand on the down low. "Yes."

"Is he the third wheel or am I?" She had no tone to her question, she really wanted to know.

"You are my partner, Bones ... first, last and always - OK?"

She nodded. He was placating her. She didn't like to be placated.

He glanced up at the platform. Hodgins was trying to explain something to Carson who was not really getting it and Hodgins was about to blow. "Walk me to the stairwell."

"Why?"

Booth ducked down to look her directly in the eyes and whispered his secret. "Cause there is a surveillance dead spot just inside the stairwell."

"And?" She was still confused.

"Good place for us to ... ya know ..."

"You want to have sex?"

"Jeez Bones," he gasped. "Was just thinking about kissing you ... but forget it now. You always have to push it just that little bit too far." He turned and walked away.

Brennan followed. "Why forget it ... what? What did I say? Booth."

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

Cam woke with a start at the sound of her ringtone. She hadn't really been sleeping but her eyes were closed and she was completely relaxed. Paul groaned; he was spooned up behind her on the couch in his office.

"Do you have to answer that?" he moaned. "It's Saturday; don't you get at least one day off?"

Cam reached for the jacket she was wearing which was in a lump on the floor just barely in arms reach. She pulled the phone out and checked the caller ID. "Saroyan ... yes ... yes ... did you find? ... very good work ... yes, I will be right there. Thank you, Dr. Brennan." She ended the call, dropped the phone and curled back into Paul's arms. She was sorry she made such a big deal earlier with Brennan about being out of contact. She would have loved to have been unreachable for the next few hours. "I've got to go," she whispered.

They had spent the last couple of hours discussing and resolving most of the issues on Cam's mind. There was an apology of course which Paul didn't need or expect, but accepted all the same. Cam had calmed down by time she arrived at his office and realized how over the top she had been. That's what Paul wanted to hear about. They discussed all of it - from Michelle and Cousin Jackson and resolved that Michelle was over eighteen and could make her own choices and that regardless of her choice, her trust fund would be secure until she was out of college. They discussed the research grant that was turned down and decided that another attempt with some public pressure might be just the thing to get it pushed through. The VA and other veterans groups would be very interested in her findings; she just needed to apply the right pressure. The Brennan/Booth thing was a total over reaction. She didn't believe that they would last but she also didn't believe that Booth was as fragile as glass. He was an adult and she knew how he felt about Brennan for longer than he did. If they didn't work out, then they got it out of their systems. It was not a crisis and it was really none of her business. As for being in control at the lab, that was all an illusion. She knew what she was taking on when she took the job. Booth had called it cat herding and that was a fair assessment. As for her position and the respect she received at the lab, she had to agree with Paul that if she weren't respected, she would be gone. Cam felt better after talking to Paul. She felt much better after ...

"I'm sorry. I would rather stay."

Paul was unwilling to let her leave at the moment and kissed her - not a good bye kiss. It was more like a stay kiss.

She pulled away. "I've really got to go."

He didn't release her. "Marry me," he said.

"What?"

"Sorry, it was supposed to be a question - will you marry me? Will you share your life with me? Will you allow me to share mine with you?"

Cam was stunned.

"This is not a spur of the moment question, Cam," he went on. "I've thought about it a lot. I've been waiting for the right moment ... candle lit dinner, picnic in the park, Sunday morning over mimosas and the crossword. We don't get those perfect moments ... not unless we make them. I'm making one - here, in my office after making love on this really uncomfortable couch." He craned his neck and back. "I love you, Camille Saroyan. I want more time with you ... I want all my time with you."

"Paul ... this is kind of sudden," she protested.

"No, it's not," he stated. "You've considered it - considered it with me. Ever since Valentine's Day things have gotten more serious between us. I know you have thought about it. We aren't kids any more, Cam. I never expected to meet anyone like you. I know we are busy people, but I think we need to make time for each other and ourselves." He paused looking soulfully into her eyes. "Will you marry me?"

Cam was overwhelmed. She had considered it but thought that it was an impossibility. "Yes."

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

Brennan and Carson made their way through an unusually large crowd at the Founding Fathers. He put his hand to her lower back and escorted her. She didn't like his hand on her. He had been doing that a lot - a hand to the shoulder, the lower arm, standing too close to her when Angela was sharing the information she had found on the Angelatron. It was entirely too familiar. Angela noticed. Hodgins noticed. Carson was just way too familiar for all of them and no one liked his flippant disrespectful attitude toward the science like they were just making it all up.

When Cam came back - looking in a much better mood than she had been, at least that was Angela's observation - Cam and Carson went off for some private conversation. Brennan was rid of him for a time and nearly forgot that he was to be their third wheel.

"How about the table in the corner?" he suggested.

It was too secluded for Brennan, but it was the only table open that had four seats. Booth was on his way. She nodded and stepped away from him - out of arms reach. She waited for him to choose a seat and sat opposite him. He moved over saying that he wanted to keep an eye on the door to watch for Booth.

"You look like a scotch drinker," Carson observed. "You'd have to be if you're with Booth."

"Booth is not an alcoholic," Brennan said protectively checking her watch. Booth was going to be late.

"Wow, that is quite a leap," he said. He caught the waiter by the arm. The waiter was not happy about being touched either. "Drinks?"

"I'll send your waiter over, sir." He said pulling his arm away roughly.

"You appear to be very ... physical."

Carson looked down at himself. "I work out."

"What I meant was that you are often touching another person in my experience it is without their permission."

He had been accused of being too physical in the past; it was not news to him. "My mother's Italian."

"I fail to see how your mother's heritage -"

"Right, literal," he interrupted her. "How did you and Booth hook up?"

"Hook up?" She had heard the expression and knew that it often had the connotation of having had sex, but she was not comfortable speaking about her sexual relationship with Booth with this man.

"Yeah ... how did Booth find you? Or you him? In the beginning ... It's not typical for a forensic anthropologist and an FBI agent to be working together."

"It should be. Our success rate at closing cases is the best."

"So I heard. I'm very much looking forward to being part of the team."

Brennan looked away just as the waiter was approaching.

"What can I get you?" he said hurriedly as he dropped menus on the table.

"Two of your best single malt ... neat," Carson ordered.

Brennan was uncomfortable when men ordered for her. "I'll have soda ... with lime, please."

The waiter walked away. Carson was going to question her, but it seemed he had screwed up again and it might be best to ignore it. He wasn't endearing himself to her at all. She was going to be a tougher nut to crack than he though. She was like no other woman he had ever met; most women would at least give him an opening. Brennan was closed up tighter than a drum. "So you and Booth?"

"Booth had a case that had no tangible leads. A girl had been found in a landfill. She had been identified, but that was all they had. Dr. Saroyan who was the medical examiner in New York at the time, suggested that he contact me to see if I could give him some answers." She paused wondering how much else she needed or wanted to say.

"And the rest - as they say - is history?" Carson filled in clearly uninterested in the origin story of Booth and Brennan.

"Yes. Yes, all events of the past can be termed history if you are satisfied with few details."

"Details? Yes I am sure there were a lot of DETAIL." He grinned lasciviously. "I knew Booth back in the day ... if he hooked up with you it wasn't just about work. And since you are still together ... it must have been fate."

"I do not believe in fate," she stated. "If you are implying that Booth and I continue to work together because of a sexual relationship - that is incorrect. Booth and I have worked very hard on our partnership, building and earning trust. To be honest, we didn't like each other much in the beginning."

"Kind of like us," Carson observed. "Well, you don't like me."

Brennan was not about to debate him. "I don't know you."

He reached over and touched her arm. "Will you give me a chance?"

"A chance at what?" Booth said sliding into the chair next to Brennan's. He looked from Carson's hand on Brennan's arm to Carson. Carson sat back taking his hand with him. Booth turned to Brennan and gave her his special smile. "Hi, sorry I'm late."

The drinks arrived. "I'll have one of those," he nodded to the scotch.

"Have this one." Brennan pushed the glass toward him.

"Still don't have the taste for it?" Booth asked taking the glass with one hand and rubbing her lower back with the other. He found that he enjoyed being so open with their new found relationship and wanted Carson to see.

"Booth, the taste of things does not -."

"Never mind." He raised his glass. "Here's to ... us." He picked the first thing that came to mind that didn't seem like it would cause too much trouble.

They all touched glassed and drank.

The conversation dropped easily into information about the case. Nothing new had come up since Booth left but they went over what they had and what the next steps were. Carson didn't add much. Cam gave them all the night and Sunday off. Carson and Booth were very talkative while Brennan sort of faded to the background. The conversation naturally turned to their time at the academy and Booth and Carson ostensibly regaled Brennan with stories of the good old days. She wasn't regaled. She found their exploits immature and devaluing the education that was to be derived from the experience. Carson always seemed to work in a girl - one for him and one for Booth and they never seemed to be the same girls from story to story. Booth wasn't uncomfortable with Carson's direction of the conversation - at least he didn't appear that way to Carson. Brennan saw that he was not happy. Booth was never very open about his sex life or when talking about not following the rules. In the past she had attributed it to his strong sense of honor and duty. Maybe he had changed. Maybe he wasn't always so honest and forthright. Could he change again? Would he?

Carson eventually turned the conversation to Brennan's books. He was trying to get her to talk and be engaged. She spoke in short sentences saying as little as possible.

"Tell him about the new one you are writing," Booth encouraged. He turned to Carson and started. "It's about an FBI agent who is killed in his sleep. If anyone could do it and get away with it, it would be Bones."

"And that helps you sleep at night?" Carson asked with a big smile on his face.

"I would rather not discuss my books," Brennan said flatly. She stood up. "You two have a great deal to discuss – catching up on old times. I'm going back to the lab."

"Bones, Cam gave us the rest of the weekend off," Booth protested.

"I will only be there for a few hours; there are some things I would like to review and better to do with no distractions." She turned to Carson. "Good night."

"Night."

"Bones, what about dinner?"

"I'll eat at the lab." She left.

Booth and Carson shared a look. Booth didn't really want Carson to know that it was unusual for Brennan to just take off like that. It actually wasn't unusual, but he knew there was more to it. He also couldn't let her leave like that. "Oh," he said standing up quickly as if he forgot something. "Order us two more drinks and I'll have the French Dip with a salad." He slapped at his stomach. He dashed off before Carson had a chance to respond.

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

Booth caught up with her about a block down the street. "Bones," he called. "Bones, wait up."

She turned and waited. "You shouldn't have left your friend."

"Look, Bones … he is more of a colleague than a friend. I mean, we used to be friends, but I honestly haven't spoken to him or seen him in a long time. Christmas cards … that sort of thing."

"I don't understand."

"What I am trying to say is that we were friends a long time ago. He's a good agent. I know he acts a little like a college kid, but it's just his way."

"Booth, if you socialize with him …"

"No, Bones … no. Look that was a long time ago. I'm different now."

"Are you? You used to say that people don't change."

"When did I say that? I never said that. I don't think that. Just look at us – we changed." He stepped in and put his hands on her waist. "And we are better than we've ever been."

"I enjoy the alteration in our relationship as well."

He leaned in. "Yeah?" He brushed his lips next to her ear.

"Yes I do."

He kissed her neck just below her ear. "I'm going to have a quick dinner with Carson and then I am going to pick you up at the lab. One hour, OK? Then we can go home … your home, OK?" He kissed her again.

"You will want longer than an hour with your friend."

"Stop calling him 'my friend'," he snapped softly. He leaned back to look at her. "He has got a lot of names – Carson, Henry, Hammer … Agent … pick one. Maybe you can give him the benefit of the doubt … for me."

"Booth -." She stopped herself. She was going to complain about his flirting and touching, but decided that she would handle her relationship with Carson directly since he was going to be sticking around. "Ok."

"Good." He kissed her again this time it was not a quick little peck on the street. It was a kiss the broke all the PDA rules. "I'll see you in an hour."

"Yes." She stood and watched him walk away. He looked back several times with a big smile and tapping his finger on his wrist to indicate time or something. Before he ducked back into the restaurant he paused to take her all in. He mouthed something to her that she didn't get. He waved, she waved back and he slipped into the restaurant.

Brennan turned back toward the way she was going. He wouldn't be there in an hour and she wouldn't blame him for his tardiness. She would have to resign herself to sharing Booth. Better with Carson than with Hannah. A text came in on her phone. It was three little images. An eye. A heart shape – only not of a real heart, a Valentine heart. And something that looked like a little lamb or sheep. She checked the sender. It was Booth. She had no idea what it was saying. She had often teased him about being so caught up in the whole texting and twittering thing that he was speaking a different language. She responded. "Thank you." It was probably not the right thing to say. She was just about to put her phone away when a call from the lab came through.

"Brennan … yes … yes … Are you certain of your findings? … Senator Monroe is Scott Angel's biological father. … Yes, I will be right there." She ended the call and considered contacting Booth and Carson, but decided that she could handle this part on her own.

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

**A/N: If I am making up the science please forgive me. **


	19. Chapter 19

**That's Why I'm Here**

By LizD

Written August 2011

**Chapter Nineteen**

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

Booth arrived back at the table just as Carson was ending a conversation on the phone. It looked like he had cut the conversation short as Booth approach. Booth would have teased him about breaking one date to make another; Carson always seemed to be about women in the past. There were two reasons why he didn't. The first was that Booth didn't want to encourage any more of that kind of talk. It was clear that it made Brennan uncomfortable, not that she didn't trust Booth, but found the objectification of women unappealing. Booth wouldn't have phrased it that way even in his head. Booth wasn't enjoying it much either, but that wasn't the second reason. Carson's mood seemed to have dropped. His whole demeanor seemed sullen and sad all of a sudden. There might have been bad news on the phone. Booth would have asked, but he thought it would be best to have Carson offer the information. Booth just needed to be ready to listen.

"Did you order?" Booth asked.

"Not yet," Carson admitted. "Couldn't get the waiter's attention." Of course he hadn't tried. He made his phone call as soon as Booth left. "So is she OK?"

"Who Bones?" Booth dismissed. "Yeah, she's great. She is always great. That's the best thing about Bones. She doesn't let stuff fester and build to the point of explosion. If she has something to say, she will just say it - doesn't matter if it is the right time or place."

"That's different."

"She's brilliant, Carson," Booth said. "She is really amazing. You'll see."

"I see what you mean about not your type." Carson seemed to want to add something else. He searched Booth's face for a second but didn't find the opening he was looking for. "Very beautiful - you always did know how to hook the babes."

Booth smiled. Brennan was beautiful and now he was allowed to really enjoy all her beauty. "Don't worry. Bones is a little hard to get to know, but all you have to do is be straight with her and do not diss her science."

"She is very serious, isn't she?"

Booth nodded. "Enough about Bones." He checked his watch. "Let's eat and get the hell out of here."

"Big date tonight?" Carson tried to joke.

"Yeah, we had plans," he smiled waiving to the waiter. "Didn't know you were coming to town."

"That's fine. I've got some where to be too. Wasn't expecting you to drop everything. I wanted to check in before we started working together and -." He stopped. There was something he wanted to say but just couldn't find the words.

"How long have you been in town?"

"I got here four days ago."

"Really? Where are you staying?"

"With a ... a friend in Georgetown. He has room so ..."

"Well, that will work until you find a place of your own." Booth wasn't really listening. He wanted to order and get out. The re-bonding with Carson would take place over the course of the case and the next case not over drinks and old times. "So, are things really over with you and Claudia?"

The waiter came, took their orders and left and Booth re-asked his question.

"Yeah, Claudia and I haven't been together in six years at least. Rita was with me for a while - most of the time. Claudia was - she was having a hard time dealing with things. Still is."

"So it was her idea ... the separation."

"Divorce ... no, it was mine. My fault. Totally my fault." He took a long drink from his scotch. "It's not really what you're thinking," he said. "I won't put this on Claudia. She deserves better. I still love her, you know. The fact that she hates me is ... well ... it sucks. And I would prefer she not spew all her ... her issues toward Rita, but like I said, it is my fault."

Carson was getting kind of misty. Booth had never seen him like that. Carson was always the life of the party. "She's the mother of your kid. You'll never stop loving the mother of your kid, even if you can't stand them." Booth feigned a laugh.

"Yeah," Carson agreed shaking off his mood. "Thought you would have a couple more by now."

"Going do it right next time," Booth said. "Parker is the one constant joy in my life, and my only regret is that I wasn't more of a father for him. It wasn't for lack of trying. Rebecca made it difficult and I didn't push for joint custody. I didn't think I had to and when I knew I did ... it was not the right thing to do for Parker. But I'm making up for it - I hope I am."

"Amazing isn't it? There are times when I could wring Rita's neck for the stupid things she does, but there is nothing I wouldn't do to protect her." He looked away and shook his head. "I just wish -."

"She'll come around, Hammer. She's a teenager."

"Yeah ... she will. Maybe it will be easier now that I am three thousand miles away. You know - phone, email, IM." There was something else about the distance that would make it easier, but Carson was holding back.

The food arrived and they dropped into unimportant subjects like diet, exercise and cholesterol. How they used to be able to eat and drink back in the day and still get up and run fifteen miles and make it to work on time.

"So you and Dr. Brennan - pretty serious, or is this just an itch that needed to get scratched after six years?"

"She's the one, man. I told you. Don't have a clue how we are going to make it work - we're like oil and water."

"You're going to do it right with her - that's how. Marriage, house and kids ... the whole normal bit."

Booth laughed. "There is nothing normal when it comes to Bones. She wants a baby ... maybe two, but she is not an advocate of marriage." Booth laughed at himself and decided that he would give Carson a little taste of the B&B history. "Ok ... so about four years ago - three and a half, Bones and I were in partners counseling - don't ask - and doing some stupid game. You know where you say a word and the other says the first word that pops into their head and back and forth."

"Free association ... not sure it's a game, but it is a useful tool in psychology."

"Great - another one - you and Sweets are going to get a long great. Anyway, Bones announces that she wants a baby - and she wants me to donate my swimmers."

"Assume you mean donate in a cup, not directly."

"Right ... she had no use for me after that. She just wanted my genes. We'd still be partners, but she would raise the baby by herself."

"Did you agree?"

The rest of the conversation over the meal was Booth telling him the story of the brain tumor and their ultimate break up, reconciliation and final hook up. It was pretty short, not filled with all the sordid details, Hannah was a very minor character, the coma dream was a one line aside and treated as if it had had no impact. Booth's real point was that they were together now and that it was fated - but that Brennan shouldn't be pushed on the whole fate debate. And that a baby was in the future - a distant future, but it was there.

Carson seemed to understand how mistakes can be made on the road to love and happiness without malice and that it was when a person finally accepts fate; good things really start to happen. Happiness is found. There will still be fallout, but the path is visible, if not clear.

"You sound like a man who has seen the light," Booth said, a little surprised at the transformation in Carson in just an hour.

"I have." He wanted to say something. It was clear on his face. He was just struggling to find the words. "Hey, you have to go," Carson said. "I'll get this," meaning the check. "And see you at the office on Monday."

Booth checked his watch. He did have to go. "Right ... yeah ... hey, you OK?"

"I'm great ... glad to be in DC."

Booth clapped him on the shoulder. Carson's had reactively covered Booth's. "It's good to have you here."

Carson removed his hand. "Go ... go see your pretty scientist. Take her some flowers or candy or a skull ... whatever she's into."

It hadn't occurred to Booth yet to start wooing Brennan properly - there was the whole dinner at his house the day before, but that was a bust. Well it was a bust in the wooing department, every other way it was a great success. Maybe he needed to finish that plan. Flowers might be in order. "See you Monday."

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

Cam sat down next to Brennan at the monitor. "This was a hell of a find, Dr. Brennan."

"It was Dr. Edison who first ordered the test and the comparison and Angela who made the match to the senator. There is a seventy-five percent chance that Senator Monroe is the father of both Scott Angel and Linda Monroe."

"Booth won't like that kind of coincidence."

"Booth doesn't believe in coincidences."

"No, he doesn't. Have you told him this yet?"

"No, I wanted to confirm Dr. Edison's findings and ..." She stopped.

"And?"

"You are a fine pathologist, Dr. Saroyan and over the years we have worked together, I have come to appreciate your ability as an administrator." She paused but began again quickly. "I find it difficult to think of anyone as my superior."

Cam smiled and shook her head. "There aren't many who can make that claim." She meant that few could claim to be Brennan's superior, not that few felt they had no superiors.

"Intellectually, that is true ... but you have a role here at the Jeffersonian that is - if only on paper - superior to mine. I will try to respect that in the future."

"I shouldn't have spoken to you like I did this morning," Cam apologized.

"No, you shouldn't have ... but I believe I understand why you did and you had a reason - albeit misguided." Brennan paused. "You said something to me when we came back to prevent you from being fired. You accused me of putting my own desires ahead of everything else and letting the work we do fall apart."

"I said that but -."

"You were incorrect. What we do is collaborative. It didn't fall apart because I left; it fell apart because too many of us left - left you alone to do the job of all of us. I understand that the Jeffersonian ordered the medico-legal lab to be closed, but it was not your fault. I can see that you might have felt that it was. I can see that it might be frustrating not to be allowed to make decisions that would have been better for the department and I understand that you might need to find a skating goat to blame."

"Skating? OH! A scapegoat." Cam was getting uncomfortable.

"I would not have been able to convince them to re-open the lab and hire everyone back if everyone weren't here to be hired back. I have some clout with the board though I do not understand why, but not that much."

"You're the best, Dr. Brennan. They want you working out of this office, regardless of what you do. It makes them look good."

Brennan shook her head; that made no sense to her. "I will be more respectful of your authority."

"Dr. Brennan ... what you do, no one can do ... and that is the truth - and you have a style that takes a little getting used to. We have worked well together in the past. I feel the dynamics changing in our little band of crime fighters and I overreacted. I'm sorry."

Brennan considered for a moment. "Dynamics? Are you referring to Angela and Hodgins' baby or that Booth and I are now having sex?"

Cam laughed. "I hope it's more than sex."

Brennan looked confused.

"Booth has been in love with you for quite a while. I hope you understand what that means ... to him."

Brennan nodded. "I do."

"I wouldn't want to see him get hurt."

A sad smile washed over Brennan's face. "I have never wanted to hurt Booth. You may not understand my motives but many of the decisions I made were to protect Booth as best as I knew how."

"I believe you believe that, but I hope you understand -."

"Yes, I do," Brennan cut her off. "People change, Dr. Saroyan. People make choices, they regret choices and they make new choices if they are smart enough to create another opportunity. I am very grateful that I was given another opportunity to make a different choice."

"Good," she smiled. "Will you tell Booth about this little development in the Monroe case?"

"If you concur."

"I do."

"Then I will tell Booth."

"Tell Booth what?" Booth's voice came from the bottom of the platform.

Cam looked at Brennan and put her hand on her forearm. "I'm going to go. Thank you Dr. Brennan. For everything."

Booth and Cam passed on the stairs and they shared a look and a smile. Booth came and took her spot putting his hand on Brennan's lower back. She moved into him but not too close. "Why are people touching me all of a sudden?"

Booth moved away a little.

"I like it when you do it, but Carson and Cam seem to feel that they can touch me. They security guard touched me." 

"Inappropriately?" he asked knowing that Brennan could take care of herself if she had to but he still had to ask.

"No. And the lady at the coffee cart held my hand when giving back change. I don't like to be touched by strangers. What makes them think it's OK suddenly?"

Booth smiled. "Maybe you aren't putting off those DON'T TOUCH ME signals, anymore." He rubbed his hand up her back. "Maybe because you are happy, people want to touch you so they can be happy too."

"It's not contagious, Booth."

"Oh no?" He grinned and kissed her.

"What about the PDA at work thing?"

He looked around and caught the security guard's eye. They exchanged a smile. "Fuck 'em. It's Saturday night and we shouldn't be working." He kissed her again and nodded to the security guard. Brennan turned. The guard was grinning from ear to ear. "I'd say happiness is contagious."

"Hardly scientific, Booth."

"Let's go, Bones."

"Don't you want to know what we discovered?"

"Will it change in the next twenty four hours?"

"No, Booth. It's science, not opinion."

"Then I don't need to know."

"You don't need to know that Scott Angel is Senator Monroe's son"

"What?"

"Won't that make a difference on whether or not you can hold him?"

He pulled out his phone and dialed. He kissed her while it was ringing. "You're a genius, Bones."

"I had nothing to do with it."

"Caroline, Booth ... you can't let him go. Flight risk ... whatever. He's the senator's son. ... That's right ... yes it does. ... By the book ... to the letter ... no screw ups ... I got it ... we got it. ... Where? Fine ... first thing when he gets back." Booth ended the call and put the phone away. "The senator is with the President in Paris ... some big meeting about the economy. He'll be back on Tuesday."

"What does that mean?"

"It means we still have tonight off, tomorrow and Monday to find the evidence that puts the senator at the crime scene and that Scott Angel is not going anywhere."

"Do you really think that the Senator is protecting his son in the murder of his daughter and her friends?"

"I don't know, Bones. That's one of the things we are going to ask him - but not tonight."

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

Jeffrey Marsden, a fortyish corporate attorney and a lobbyist for Human Rights Campaign in DC, was home working on a Saturday night. He had a very modern loft in Georgetown and was clearly doing quite well for himself financially. He was working on his laptop at the counter in his open floor plan living space and talking on the phone. Henry Carson used his key and entered. He did not look happy.

"Let me call you back," Jeffrey said just before ending the call. He watched as Carson crossed to the counter and poured two scotches. "So ... how did it go?"

Carson drained his glass and pushed the other toward Jeffrey. "It didn't."

Jeffrey frowned. "How about we go out for dessert?"

"Not up for it," Carson said sadly moving over to the couch in the living area.

Jeffrey didn't move. "Rita called," he announced.

Carson sat up. "She called here and not my cell?"

"She was surprised when I answered. She was probably hoping to leave a message." He paused. "She was nice - well she was polite. She said for you to call her back if you got in at a reasonable hour."

"Ok." He didn't move.

Jeffrey got up and moved over to the couch and sat down next to Carson. He took his hand. "Do you really think your friend won't understand?"

Carson looked at him for a long moment. "I have no idea. You know how I was before."

"A little overcompensating."

"Yeah, well I dropped right back into that jerk the moment I saw Booth. Like an old suit - I hate that it still fit."

"You mean to tell me that Booth hasn't changed in all these years?"

"No, he has ... but he's still batting for the same team. Though Dr. Brennan is not like anyone I have ever see him with before."

Jeffrey turned to face Carson. "The FBI doesn't discriminate."

"I know ... I'm not worried about my job. I just wish they didn't partner me up with Booth. It was hard enough coming out to my parents and wife and daughter. But to tell an old friend that I have been lying to him for years particularly because most of our history surrounds sex with women ... that feels ... "

Jeffrey winced. "He might surprise you."

"He might."

"And if he doesn't ... screw him - not literally - find another partner."

Carson laughed. "You know, you're right."

"I usually am." They kissed. "How about that dessert ... or just a cappuccino? That place on the corner has a jazz guitarist on Saturday nights."

"Jazz? You don't like jazz."

"You do."

Carson smiled. "Sure. Let me call Rita back - that won't take long."

"Give her a chance, H. She called you. That's huge."

"You're right again."

"And you thought I was just another pretty face."

"Never entered my mind."

"Do you have to work tomorrow?" Marsden asked. "Some people are going sailing and want us to come along."

"Sounds great."

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

Brennan found Booth on the balcony around two in the morning. She came up behind him and wrapped her arms around his waist.

"Hey," he said turning to pull her into an embrace. "I didn't wake you, did I?"

"Don't like sleeping alone." She curled into him. Her voice was thin and weak. "What are you doing out here?"

"Just thinking."

"Is something troubling you?"

"Not at all." He rubbed his hands down her arms. "I was thinking about you and me and Parker."

"We haven't told him about us yet."

"No we haven't. We haven't told many people."

"But they seem to know all the same."

"You talking about Cam?"

"She thinks that I am going to hurt you."

"I've known Cam a long time."

"Do you think Parker will be unhappy about the change in our relationship?"

"He loves you, Bones. You know that."

"As your partner."

"Parker will be fine. I'm not worried. In fact I like the idea that the three of us can be more like a family."

Brennan was silent for a long moment. "You continue to ask me if I trust you."

"And each time you say you do."

"Do you trust me?"

"Of course," he said a little too quickly.

"Do you trust me?" she asked again.

"Yes," he said slowly. "Yes I do."

"If I told you that I am not as sure about our future as you claim to be ..."

"I would tell you to have a little faith in us ... in our history ... in the relationship we have built. You like science and you like experiments. You also like statistics."

"I like evidence that supports a theory."

"Then you have over six years of evidence that points to the fact that we are solid."

She thought about that for a moment. "Agreed." She hugged him tightly to her. "You weren't there when I woke up," she said sadly.

"I'll never be too far away, OK Bones?"

"Ok." She didn't sound convincing.

"What's up?"

"I feel ... different ... unsteady ... unsure ... insecure. I have never felt this way before. Something is different."

"What is different?"

"I feel like my life is slipping out of my control. Like I'm not alone anymore and while that is wonderful it is also very scary. To be responsible for another person -" 

"Bones, stop." He took her hands in his. "You have been responsible to me since the moment we became partners. Nothing has changed."

"Booth, if anything happened to you -."

"It won't." His face washed with concern. "I've never seen you like this." He wrapped her up in his arms. She was truly scared or worried or just plain emotional. "We are good. We are better than ever." He kissed her and pulled her tight.

She felt like crying only she wasn't sad. "Something feels different - physically different. I can't control it. Is this what being is love is like?"

"Love can be very disorienting," he admitted honestly. "Do you think you might be sick? I mean, you lost the taste for things, you are nauseated and you seem tired - but that I wrote off to ... well, you know. Maybe you should go see a doctor."

"I have an appointment for next week. I was going to start on birth control again."

"Right." A thought passed through Booth's mind. He didn't want to form the words even in his head. They had been sloppy when it came to birth control in the last couple of weeks. Not all the time, but sloppy enough. He pushed the thought that edged his mind out forcefully. It was too absurd to think about. "Well, maybe she will have some other idea. Blood test ... maybe you just need more iron. Spinach. Broccoli. A steak."

"Booth, I don't think eating animal flesh ..."

"Joke, Bones ... it was a joke. How about we go back to bed? We have the whole day to ourselves tomorrow."

"I thought we had to find some evidence on Senator Monroe."

"I think we need a day off ... a whole day ... start to finish."

"How about we take Parker to a movie and for pizza? ... if Rebecca agrees."

"I like that idea, Bones."

"I love you," she offered.

Booth grinned. "I know."

"You are supposed to say it back," she said.

"Am I?" He scooped her up in his arms. "How about if we let actions speak louder than words?"


	20. Chapter 20

**That's Why I'm Here**

By LizD

Written August 2011

**Chapter Twenty**

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

Brennan was out on her balcony, in her bathrobe, hair still wet from the shower with a steaming cup of tea at her side. She felt great – physically and emotionally. She was actually hungry, not like she just needed to eat, but that she had a real taste for food – that was a first in a few days. It was early Sunday morning, but not too early. She was working on a chapter of her book; an idea had come to her and she had to get it down before it faded. Booth had left an hour before. He had gone home to get a change of clothes or two including a suit for Monday morning. He said he would stop and pick up some scones at the bakery near his apartment, the ones that Brennan liked, and promised to make her a gourmet breakfast. He had called Rebecca to see if they could have Parker for the day or a good part of the day, but she hadn't returned the call before he left. Parker was still in a cast so it limited the events they could do. After talking to him the night before Booth knew that Parker was going stir crazy and needed to get out of the house and out from under the overprotective eye of his mother.

Brennan heard the door open and close. She liked that Booth was coming and going at her house like he belonged there. No more knocks, no more trepidation about where to stand, sit or be, no more making up excuses to come over. He had even started to do some little repair work over the past week. He changed out the shower head that she had never gotten around to, he fixed the leak in the kitchen sink which he claimed was no big deal and he moved some boxes down to storage. He said he was going to look at her dishwasher too, but since she claimed she never used it that was put on hold. It was all very domestic and without discussion. It felt good. She wondered if she would get that comfortable at his apartment; not that she was handy but there were things she could do at his place.

Booth came up behind her and kissed her cheek. "Hmm, you smell great."

She put her hand up behind his neck to hold him there. "I smell like you," she replied. "You used my shower gel again."

He laughed and nuzzled her neck. "Who would have thought that anyone would want to smell like pomegranate citrus mist soap?"

She had asked herself the same question when she bought it and still had didn't have an answer, but she was beginning to like it. She liked it on him too.

"So, how are Andy and Kathy doing this morning?" he asked looking over her shoulder at the screen.

She scrolled back to the beginning of the chapter.

"Whoa ... way to go Lister. Man after my own heart." He reached over to scroll down so he could read the rest. "You're going to have to be careful, Bones. They are going to move your books out of crime/mystery."

"And put them where?"

"In a brown paper bag behind the counter with the rest of the porn."

"You think this is pornography?"

"Hey ... Don't change a word on my account, but - Oh hey ... there's that thing ... you know that thing from page 182 in your other book. Did Angela really tell you about that?"

"Yes."

"You think Hodgins?" he pressed.

"I do."

"Way to go Hodgins." He looked at her expectantly. "So have you ..."

"Not yet ... but ..." She shrugged an encouraging smile. "I'm interested."

"Yeah?"

"Yeah." She looked at him coyly. "Have you?"

"No," he defended almost too defensively. "But, you know me ... I'm open ... we'll need to stretch first."

She nodded and smiled approvingly. "Could be a lot of fun."

They kissed.

Booth's phone rang interrupting them from pursuing the idea any further. He groaned until he saw the caller ID. "Hey Rebecca," he said joyfully keeping his eyes on Brennan. He sat down on the chair next to hers. "No, I know … no mountain climbing, no skateboarding, no soccer … We'll have him back before six. … Five? Ok … five. … Great. … Yeah, she's right here. … OK … I will. See you in an hour. … Right … bye." He hung up with a broad smile across his face. "He's ours," he announced. "And Rebecca says hello."

"So you told her about us?"

"She guessed."

"And?"

"And nothing ... she is fine. She ... she likes you," he lied. Rebecca didn't like Brennan per se, but she respected her and appreciated what she brought to Booth and Parker's life.

"What will you say to Parker?" Brennan asked after a pause.

"What will we say, Bones?" he corrected. "We're in this together, right?"

"While it is true that we are in this relationship together, your relationship with Parker must take precedence. I accept that Parker will always be first in your life."

"Bones." Booth agreed of course, but didn't think that it needed to be stated so definitively.

"It's natural ... there's a DNA bond between father and son."

"Blood bond, Bones," he corrected.

"Strictly speaking, your blood -."

"Never mind. I get it."

"When you introduced Parker to Hannah -."

"Not the same thing at all, Bones."

"Or other women you have dated -."

"First of all ... we are doing a hell of a lot more than dating. And secondly, Parker knows you ... he loves you," Booth protested. "He'll be fine."

"I care a great deal for him as well," she admitted. For the first time she realized just how big a deal this was going to be and she was concerned. "There is an established dynamic in between the three of us - that dynamic has changed. While we may be comfortable with this change, Parker may not. We need to address it honestly and make him as comfortable as possible. Let him ask question, address his concerns."

"Bones, he's eleven." He was about to deny that there would be any issue but then he remembered how Parker acted when he told him that Hannah was gone. Booth sat back and exhaled. "What do you suggest?"

"I suggest that you pick him up and have some time by yourselves. You can tell him about us and talk to him about any issues that might bring up for him. When you are sure that he has had his say, then we can proceed with our plans for the day."

Booth didn't want to make too big a deal about it. "OK, fine ... but he won't have any issues, Bones."

"Booth, he's a child and must be reminded that no one else can take his place in your life."

"He knows that," Booth protested.

"People sometimes need reminding ... particularly children."

"Do you need reminding?" He leaned toward her.

"I am not a child," she professed.

"No - you are all woman, but do you need reminding that no one can take your place in my life?" He got very close to her and looked deeply into her eyes.

"I am satisfied with my position," she said leaning toward him. "As long as it continues to remain the same."

He smiled a broad smile. "What does that mean?"

"It means that I like being your partner professionally and I enjoy being your lover."

"Enjoy?" he pressed.

"I enjoy it a lot."

"Yeah?" He edged closer to her.

"Very much." Her lips were within a hair's breadth of his.

"We are more than lovers and partners, Bones."

"I appreciate the changes inherent in new relationship."

"Appreciate?"

"Value ... enjoy ... encourage." She was just about to kiss him. "Booth, when do you go to church?"

Spell broken.

He leaned back. "What?"

"When do you go to church? You profess to be a Catholic -"

"I am Catholic," he stated.

"From my research, it's part of the practice to go to church on Sundays."

Booth felt like his was caught by Sister Mary Temperance with his pants down. He was waiting for the wooden ruler to come out and smack his knuckles ... or some other part of his anatomy.

"And what about confession?" she went on. "When you confess, do you confess the sex we are having? The Catholic religion does not support extramarital sex - ?"

"Premarital sex, Bones."

"Premarital implies that is it before marriage."

"Let's not do that debate now," he said sadly.

"Or birth control. Will you confess that too? And isn't contrition part of the confession and the vow to not repeat the sin?"

"Bones," he groaned.

"I would like to go with you, when you go to church. I assume that I won't be able to join you in confession."

"Are you going to do an anthropological study?" He almost laughed. "No. No way. You are not doing a study on the Catholic church - not my church, not me and my church."

"If we are to be a couple, I should understand your ways."

"My ways?" he exclaimed. "I'm not from some tribe of aborigines in outer Mongolia."

"We are all from tribes ... you and I are forming a tribe."

He eyed her lustily. "Will someone study our ways?" He leaned in and tried to kiss her.

"Booth!" she scolded. "Now that I see this side of you, I realize that you are not a prude."

"Told you."

"So when do you go to church if you don't go on Sundays?"

Booth sat back and looked away. Across the courtyard he saw Mrs. Adams coming outside with the Sunday paper and coffee. He smiled and waved at her.

Brennan followed his line of sight. "You flirt," she accused with a great deal of good humor.

"Nothing wrong with being neighborly, Bones." He checked his watch. "I'm going to go get Parker. Should we meet you back here?"

"So you are ignoring the church questions and the flirting observation."

"Yes," he stood up. "Here?" he asked again not allowing a discussion on the other topics.

"No, I will meet you at the park."

"He wants to see Captain America ... you up for that?"

"I don't know what that is," she said.

"Well, I suggest you use that super brain and Google it. Do a little research before you meet us." He kissed her lightly on the lips. "OK?"

"There's a site called Wikipedia ... it professes to be an encyclopedia but the information is not accurate."

"You don't say," he said sarcastically. "You can edit the entries, Bones. But I wouldn't suggest it - you would use up all your free time." He leaned over to her lap top, opened a browser and typed: CAPTAIN AMERICA. He hit enter. "I'll give you a hint, Bones. It was a comic book before it was a movie. Start there." He kissed her again. "Don't be late."

"Where am I meeting you?"

"The theater ... down by the marina ... he wants to see it in IMAX 3D."

"What is IMAX 3D?"

He again pointed to the lap top. "Google it, baby." He almost skipped out of the apartment. It was rare for him to be in such a good mood.

"What about breakfast?" she called out but he was already gone.

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

Brennan sat at the table with Parker as he went on and on talking about how fantastic the movie was. Brennan listened and asked questions to which Parker was overjoyed to tell her all her knew. She had indeed done her homework and had some very good questions about the movie vs. the comic book. He was surprisingly well versed on the subject and told her that he had read all the comic books. He started to talk about The Avengers movie and the other superheroes that would appear in that one. That was when Bones was technically out of her depth. She had seen that footnote on the Captain America page, but hadn't had time to follow it through.

Booth came back to the table with their drinks. "Pizza is going to take about 20 minutes," he said placing his hand on Brennan shoulder. "I got you a personal size veggie, OK?" She nodded. He nodded toward the restroom and excused himself. As he was leaving he slid his hand down her arm and pressed her hand quickly.

Brennan looked back at Parker. His joy from the moment before was gone. "Parker, are you OK?"

"Fine."

"You don't seem fine," she pressed.

"When my dad asks you to marry him, will you say no too?"

The question seemed to come out of nowhere and there was no good answer. "Why do you ask?"

"Cause all of dad's girlfriends leave ... are you going to leave?"

Brennan was prepared for a discussion with Parker, but didn't think it would cut to the heart of matter so quickly. She was speechless.

"You don't have to answer," he said.

"I want to answer, Parker. It is a very complicated question, one that involves future actions. It is impossible to know the future." She studied him for a moment. "I have no intention of leaving at this time."

"Fine." He said playing with his straw in his soda.

"I love Booth very much," she added.

"Why do you call him that?" Parker asked. "All his other girlfriends call him by his name."

"I have called him Booth since we met. He has not asked me to call him anything else."

"So will you say no when he asks you to marry him?"

"That is a bit of a complicated question too."

"Why?"

"Booth and I have different beliefs when it comes to marriage." She paused. "Is it important to you?"

"It's important to my dad." He looked down. "Hannah left because she wouldn't marry him."

"Do you miss her?"

"No."

"No?"

"She was OK ... but she didn't like me."

"I knew Hannah fairly well; I can't believe she didn't like you."

"She didn't want kids. Do you?"

"Yes." Something occurred to her. "You don't think that Hannah turned Booth down because of you, do you?"

Parker shrugged; clearly he did.

"Have you talked to your father about that?"

"No, he doesn't like talking about Hannah."

"No, he doesn't."

"So how come you are his girlfriend now? Will you still work together? When you stop being his girlfriend will you still work together?"

"You ask some very good questions, Parker, but they all are based on future actions. Something we can't know." She considered for a moment. "Do you have a girlfriend?"

He looked down. "Mary Ellen Barker is OK. She thinks Ironman is better than Captain America ... but she's OK."

"How long have you known her?"

"Since first grade. We sat next to each other in home room."

"But you only started liking her recently?"

"Yeah ... I guess ... she's OK."

"Maybe Booth and I are like that ... it took us a while to figure out that we liked each other like that."

Parker seemed to accept that.

"You know Parker ... you and I will be friends just like we have been."

"Yeah?"

"Yes, of course. I enjoy your company very much."

"You're pretty cool too."

"Thank you," she said with a smile.

"Should I call you something else now?"

"Something else?"

"Hannah told me to call her Hannah."

"My brother and father call me Tempe. It's short for Temperance."

"Tempe? I like it. Can I call you that too?"

She smiled. "I would like that."

He smiled broadly. "And you said you wanted kids?"

"One child ... possibly two. Would you be OK with that? If Booth and I had a baby? He or she would be your sibling - half sibling."

"Yeah ... that would be cool, I guess. Mom and Brent were talking about kids. Mom doesn't want any more. Brent has a kid so he doesn't want another one either. Hannah said she would adopt if she ever wanted one."

Brennan nodded. "That seems very socially responsible."

"Whatever ... I don't like her anymore." He started scratching at his cast.

"I'm sorry."

"She never even said good bye to me."

"I'm not sure she said good bye to too many people."

"So ... will I stay at your house on my weekends with Dad?"

"Would you like that?"

"Sure," he said quickly. "Then we can swim all the time."

"You're right." She wondered if she should have made that offer without Booth. "You know if you don't want me to spend time with you two, you just need to tell me."

"No, you're OK." He kept trying to scratch under his cast.

She nodded at his cast. "Your bones are healing ... if we took an X-Ray right now I could show you the remodeling."

"Really?"

"Yes."

"Can we? I mean, I have a presentation in science class next week. Maybe you can come in and discuss bone stuff."

"It is your presentation, shouldn't you discuss ... bone stuff."

"Yeah," he moaned. "Will you help me?"

"Of course."

"Awesome ... can we bring some real bones in? And the X-rays?"

"We could probably arrange that, but you will need to do a lot of research too and write it all up."

"Awesome!"

"What is awesome?" Booth asked placing the pizza's down on the table.

"Tempe is awesome."

"Yes. Yes, she is." Booth looked from his son to Brennan back to his son. "Tempe?"

"She said I could call her that now that she is your girlfriend."

Booth looked back at Brennan. She smiled and nodded. "Ok. Good." He leaned in and whispered in her ear. "I don't have to call you that, do I?"

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

Brennan and Parker were waiting for Booth to bring the SUV around. They had had a very good day. The movie was fun. Lunch was fun. They went to an arcade after and Parker showed Brennan how to play several games. It was a good time.

Across the parking lot Brennan spied Henry Carson. He was walking with another man toward the theater. He didn't notice her. She watched him for a moment. Carson reached down and took the other man's hand in a very familiar fashion. They kissed quickly and entered the movie theater.

"Bones?" Parker asked.

She looked down at him. "Yes?"

"Can we go to the lab now to get the X-Rays?"

She checked her watch. "Sure." She looked back up at the place she had last scene Carson and the man. She was more than a little confused. Booth pulled up to the curb.

"Where to?"

"The Lab!" Parker said climbing into the front seat. Brennan started to get into the back seat without a word.

"The lab? Do we have time?"

"Yes," said Brennan.

"Hey Bud ... let Bones sit up front, OK?"

"Sure." Parker climbed over the seat.

Brennan took her place but was still a little distracted. She was going to have to ask Angela about what she witnessed.

"Bones? You OK?" Booth said reaching over to take her hand.

"Of course."

Booth kissed her hand and released it. He caught Parker's expression in the back seat. He was smiling and happy. It was a good day - and it wasn't over yet.

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

I owe this fix to angiebc - thanks for setting me straight. NO NO on DR. BONES! HA HA


	21. Chapter 21

**That's Why I'm Here**

By LizD

Written September 2011

**Chapter Twenty-one**

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

"Do you consider yourself bisexual?" Brennan asked.

Angela nearly spit out her decaf coffee which she was contemplating doing anyway. "Good morning to you too sweetie," she said.

Brennan didn't understand Angela's tone. "Would that be considered a personal a question?"

"Uh … yeah!"

"I consider you my best friend and you have repeatedly said that I was yours," she stated justifying her inquiry. "I am not asking for details of the encounters."

"Not yet," Angela said.

"Though you have shared many of your heterosexual encounters."

"Right … right … page 187." She was sorry about ever since Hodgins found out.

"I thought it was on page 182."

"Nope, 187 ... trust me ... we have a framed copy in our bedroom."

Brennan didn't understand but wasn't interested enough to ask. "So clearly you were sexually active with Hodgins."

"Clearly." She rubbed her baby belly.

"And Mr. Bray, that photographer in Arizona and your first husband - I forget his name. Oh yes, and the man from the bar you took me to."

"Grayson Barasa."

"What?"

"Garyson Barasa is my husband – ex-husband. You will need to be more specific about the bar."

"You stated that you were sexually active with Roxie. Can I assume that she was not the only female in your history?"

"Yeah .. my sexual history," she shook her head. "Is this going in your book?"

"No," she said definitively, but it might be interesting to add a bisexual character into one of her stories. "So you have sex with men and women-"

"Not indiscriminately," Angela defended. "Well sometimes," she smiled thinking back to a simpler time in her life.

"Do you consider yourself bisexual?"

"Or was I just experimenting?"

"I don't know what that means. But during your periods of homosexuality did you experience social condemnation or shunning?"

"Shunning? This is not the fifteen hundreds, sweetie." She set down her tablet. "Where is this coming from?"

"I am not at liberty to say ... it would be ... I'm not sure of the expression."

"Outing someone?"

"I don't know what that means."

"Just so we are clear," Angela whispered. "You're not talking about yourself."

Brennan was surprised by the question. "While I find some women to be very attractive physically, I am not sexually attracted to women."

"Curious?"

"At the moment, I am satisfied sexually - very satisfied."

"Go Booth." A thought flashed through Angela's mind. "You are not talking about Booth are you?"

"Booth is heterosexual," Brennan stated definitively.

"You're sure."

"I am."

"He's not homophobic, is he?"

Brennan thought for a moment. "I have no reason to believe that he is, but his religion teaches that homosexual behavior is against divine and natural law." It had occurred to Brennan that Booth might react adversely to Carson if he was indeed a homosexual or bisexual. That couple with Carson's behavior was what prevented her from sharing with Booth. "He accepted your relationship with Roxie without issue."

"Guys like to think about two women, sweetie. They think it's hot; they don't get that the women aren't thinking of them."

Brennan wanted to move on. "I am asking for another reason." She wanted to know why Carson was hiding his sexuality. "I witnessed something last night that confused me. Homosexuality is accepted in many cultures, however the western society has a difficult time ..."

"Embracing it?"

"Accepting it," she corrected. "The rate of hate crimes, suicides in teens and young adults and the need for legislation to prohibit discrimination in the workplace and lodgings are evidence of this lack of acceptance."

"As well as the defense of marriage act. Don't ask don't tell. Yeah, we could go on and on. Our society is getting better ... slowly. But tell me what did you witness?"

"I saw a man - who has been married and professes loudly and often in appropriately that he is heterosexual - with another man."

"And you are sure they weren't just friends?"

"The behavior they displayed was more than friendly - if we consider the time and place."

"So in some other cultures you might think they were friends."

"They appeared to be lovers."

"So your question is - would someone try to hide his sexuality by pretending to be the opposite due to some ... shunning?"

"Yes." 

"Happens all the time. Some gay men and women form a bond with a person of the opposite sex as a cover so that people won't ask about their sexual persuasion. The person is called a beard."

"A beard? They have facial hair?"

"Not literally a bears, sweetie. Sometimes this beard person is in on it and sometimes they aren't."

"In on it?"

"Meaning they know that their role is to be a mask for their partner. Sometimes this relationship is taken as far as marriage."

"I don't understand."

"You know Neal in accounting?

"No."

"Doesn't matter. He was married to a woman for nearly fifteen years. They had three kids together. He is gay and just left his wife for his lover - his male lover - of twenty years."

"So if he was married and had children and carried on an affair with a man, wouldn't he be considered bisexual?"

"No ... maybe ... it's complicated. Some people are just in denial."

"Can the homosexual relationship be the ... what did you call it ... beard?"

Angela shook her head. "I don't know... maybe, but I can't think why right now. Why are you asking?"

Brennan was trying to decide how much information she wanted to give away."

"Dr. Brennan?"

Angela and Brennan both turned to see Carson standing in Angela's doorway. There was no way of knowing how long he was standing there.

"Morning," he said with a bright smile. "I was looking for Booth."

"He is interviewing Scott Angel this morning," Brennan said flatly but the skilled eye of her best friend could tell that she was uncomfortable with Carson.

"He told me to meet him here."

Brennan didn't respond. Angela realized that Carson was the man Brennan had witnessed. She was slightly disappointed.

"I have the warrant for Linda Monroe's apartment," Carson stated.

Cam walked in. "Dr. Brennan? You haven't left yet?"

"No, I was waiting for Booth and the warrant."

"Warrant – check," Carson said smiling at Cam. "Moring, Dr. Saroyan."

"Please," she scoffed at his formalness. "I have seen you in your underwear."

"That was a bathing suit and you were someone less attired if I remember correctly." He laughed.

Brennan interrupted. "I will take Dr. Edison with me."

"I need him here," Cam stated. "You and Hank can handle it," she said. "Show him the Jeffersonian method."

"What are we looking for?" Carson asked.

"Evidence that Linda Monroe knew Scott Angel. We are no longer treating this as random – so motive, I believe is what Booth would call it."

"Aren't they siblings?"

"Half siblings ... nothing in the public record has Angel related to the senator or that the senator had a son."

"Shouldn't we be looking into the Senator then?"

"Booth is working on that ... but he doesn't like to pluck the plumage of politicians."

"Pluck the plumage?" Carson asked confused. 

"Ruffle the feathers," Angela and Cam corrected.

"Right, Right. Good to know now that I am in DC," he said stepping back. "Lead on, MacDuff."

"I don't know what that means?" she said.

"It means 'lead and I will follow'."

She walked out in front of him. "You know my name is not MacDuff, so I will assume that you are trying to quote Shakespeare. It is a common misquotation. It should be 'lay on, MacDuff,' which is an invitation to MacDuff from Macbeth to engage in combat."

"Let's not do that," Carson said.

Cam and Angela look at each other. "Brennan quoting Shakespeare?" Cam said.

"Ah, to be a fly on the wall," Angela smiled.

"Is that Shakespeare too?"

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

Sweets sat at the table in the interrogation room. Booth stood off to the side bouncing his rubber ball off the floor and the wall. PA-DUM-THUMP … PA-DUM-THUMP … PA-DUM-THUMP. It was clearly annoying Sweets. They had been waiting a while for Angel to get brought up.

"Agent Booth," he snapped. "How are you and Dr. Brennan handling Vincent's death?"

Booth snatched the ball out of the air. Froze for a long moment and then recommenced his ball bouncing. … PA-DUM-THUMP. "Fine."

"Fine?" Sweets said a little louder as if trying to drown out the sound of the ball hitting the wall and floor. "Just fine?" Sweets was dying to ask about his comment to Carson about Brennan being 'taken.' "Often when two people share the death of a friend or colleague, it tends to put petty differences in perspective and allows for a reconnection of sorts." Booth didn't respond. "So you and Dr. Brennan … are … fine?"

"Yeah, Sweets. Fine … we're fine." Booth turned away from Sweets but forgot about the mirror. His expression of joy was hard to hide. Sunday was a great day. It started with a great morning – awesome morning – after an awesome night. Followed by a great afternoon – a really, really, great afternoon with Parker, so much more than Booth expected. For all of Brennan's social awkwardness – kids loved her, his kid loved her. And the evening, after they dropped Parker off, well, that was adults only and it was better than awesome … it was FAN-DAMN-TASTIC! Page 182 be damned – they were writing a whole new book – metaphorically speaking. "Fine," he repeated.

"Will Agent Carson be accepted?" Sweets pressed.

"What are you talking about, Sweets? Bones and I have worked with other agents … we work with you."

"Under protest," he said under his breath. "And I am not an agent."

"You can say that again," Booth said loudly enough for Sweets to hear. "Bones and Carson will be fine."

"So Carson is a good friend of yours?" Sweets asked when what he really wanted to ask was 'So, are you and Dr. Brennan headboard banging?'

"We knew each other at the academy. We have run into each other every year or so. Would say we are BFFs or anything, but yeah … we're friends."

"Will that interfere?" Booth again snatched the ball out of the air and glared at Sweets. "Working with an old friend … and with … your … with Dr. Brennan?"

"Sweets, don't go all shrinky on me."

"You had a relationship with Carson a long time ago. You have changed. He has changed. You are now partnered with Dr. Brennan – or consider yourself partners."

"What the hell does that mean?"

"She is not an agent, Agent Booth; she is a civilian consultant," he stated and left no room for discussion since it was the truth. Booth and Brennan were partners in their own eyes, not the Bureau's. "You two have history and a way of working together this is … well … cliquish."

"We let you sit at our lunch table, Sweets."

"Further … there is … I mean … what I'm trying to say … Let's face it the past couple of years have put a lot of strain on your once very solid relationship."

"Thanks to you," Booth snapped.

"Thanks to me?"

"Don't play the innocent, Sweets. We never should have agreed to let you study us. You have done nothing to facilitate our partnership … or anything else we have – could have had. That damn book and your constant prying."

"I feel I have gotten you both to question truths that you were either denying or holding on to like a lifeline. I believe I have helped."

"Yeah … right … we'll name our first kid after you."

"So you and Dr. Brennan are talking about kids."

Booth nearly choked. "It was a joke, Sweets."

"If the status of your relationship with Dr. Brennan has changed … if you two are now … sleeping together, the FBI should be made aware. They may want to consider ending your field work."

Booth's eyes flamed red. "Sweets … listen to me … if you ever suggest, imply, infer, advocate, propose or otherwise hint at splitting up me and Bones, you will be writing books about the clinical efficacy and focused outcomes of Eskimos in Alaska."

Sweets didn't know if he should be intimidated by the threat of transfer or touched that Booth remembered the original focus of his book about them.

Just then Agent Larry Hawkins walked in. "Hey Booth, I have this room now."

"Not any more, Hawkins."

"You aren't still waiting for Scott Angel?"

"Yeah … some paperwork mix-up."

"Mix-up? He was released last night."

"Released?" Booth shouted. "Who released him?"

"I think he made bail." He looked back out of the room over his shoulder and then leaned back and whispered conspiratorially, "I hear he is Senator Monroe's illegitimate son."

"He is also the one who killed Senator Monroe's legitimate daughter and four other women." Booth blasted out of the interrogation room leaving Sweets and Hawkins in his wake.

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

The car ride over was pretty stiff. Carson apologized for his previous behavior. Brennan wasn't sure which behavior he was referring to specifically, but said that no apology was necessary. They mostly talked about the case. Brennan caught him up more so than any file could. Carson was impressed. She was precise and exacting and really knew how to put clues together without actually jumping to conclusions. He could see why Booth would have solicited her help so long ago and done whatever he could to maintain it.

Brennan had some questions, but didn't know how to start. Carson helped.

"So you and Booth took Booth's kid to Captain America yesterday, huh?"

"Yes," she found her opening. "We went to a theater at the marina. It was a beautiful day. Too beautiful to be inside watching a movie."

"It was," he agreed. "I was down at the marina yesterday too … I went sailing with some friends."

"You have friends in DC?"

Yes was all Carson said. Brennan was forming her next question but they arrived at Monroe's apartment.

Carson opened the door to Linda Monroe's apartment. He glanced at Brennan and was about to step back to let her precede him, but his cop training took over. Something was off. He slipped his weapon from his holster and held it in both hands down low.

"No one should be here," he said in a hushed tone confirming what they had discussed.

"No one," Brennan concurred.

"Let me check it out, OK?" He nodded for her to wait there. "Don't really like the unlocked door thing."

Brennan nodded. Carson entered and cleared the apartment quickly. He nodded for Brennan enter. He holstered his weapon.

"Angel has been here," Brennan stated. "Recently."

"Some people are just messy."

She nodded to the pizza box on the counter. "It's from last night." She pointed out the name on the box. It said SCOTT in bright red letters.

"He's in jail," Carson protested.

From behind Brennan a form stepped in from the hall holding a bat – it was male. He raised it slightly and brought it down hard on Brennan's back and shoulder. She fell to the floor with a great thunk her head just missing the counter, but not the floor. Carson whipped around reaching for his weapon. The bat again swung and caught him under the chin and knocked him backward to the floor.

Scott Angel stepped out of the shadows. A sick smile crossed his face. He kicked the front door closed behind him, and locked it. A muffled phone rang. It was coming from Brennan's pocket. Angel reached in and pulled the phone out. He grinned at the caller ID and answered it. "Agent Booth," he drawled. "I'm so glad you called."

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

The color drained from Booth's face as he recognized Angel's voice on Brennan's cell. His hand formed a fist around the phone; his knuckles went white. "Angel," he said trying to keep the emotion out of his voice.

"She's not dead, Agent Booth," Angel said. "Neither of them are, but they could be very soon – if you don't play your cards right."

Booth bit every response that came to mind back. "What do you want?"

"Exactly the right question to ask," he said with a twisted smile.


	22. Chapter 22

**That's Why I'm Here**

By LizD

Written September 2011

**Chapter Twenty-two**

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

Brennan was face down on the floor of Linda Monroe's apartment unconscious. Carson was on his side facing away from her; he was dazed but he did not lose consciousness completely. He thought he heard a phone ring but it blended with the ringing in his head. He heard a muffled voice over him that he assumed was the assailant; he would find out later that it was Scott Angel. Carson couldn't make out the words but the drawl in the voice was enough to let Carson know what kind of man the assailant was - rather what kind of man he was becoming. Carson knew the type all too well. He had just spent six months tracking down such a psychotic, sadistic, bastard who would kill and taunt family and law enforcement with the deaths because it was fun. On the upside, the death itself was unimportant so the victim was not tortured. It occurred to Carson that if Scott Angel weren't stopped he would be responsible for many more deaths than just these five women.

As the assailant continued to speak over him, Carson felt a foot nudge him over onto his back. His weapon was kicked away and his cuffs were taken from his belt. For each attempt to resist he was rewarded with a kick to the kidneys or the groin. Carson's arm was yanked over his head as he was dragged across the floor. He felt his left wrist being cuffed then his right. He was linked to something heavy and metal like a radiator. He tried to look up and was given one final kick to the head. That's when he lost consciousness.

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

"Agent Booth," Scott Angel drawled. "I'm so glad you called." He waited for a reply. "She's not dead, Agent Booth," Angel went on. "Neither of them are, but they could be very soon – if you don't play your cards right." He again paused for a response loving the fact that he was in control.

Booth had to think quickly. Angel had Brennan's phone. Where was she and who was she with? The why she was anywhere without him was a question he would get answered another time. "What do you want?" Booth asked through gritted teeth.

"Exactly the right question to ask," he said. "I want Senator Wilson Monroe."

Booth heard thumps like someone being kicked and a groan that was silenced. He swerved to the side of the road and stopped. Was that a female groan? Did he just kick Bones? Booth couldn't drive, think and talk all at the same time. "He's in Paris," he stated urgently trying to get Angel's attention.

"Odd time for a vacation just after his darling daughter was murdered, don't you think?"

Booth had thought that when he first learned that the senator was out of the country at the moment all he cared about was that there was three thousand miles of ocean between Booth and the object of this whack job's desire. "Yes," Booth said thinking that he needed to stay on this guy's good side. Pointing out that it was business trip with the President of the United States was not germane.

"Another right answer, Agent Booth. You might just win a prize ... you might just be able to save your pretty scientist's life." Angel paused to see if Booth would say anything that would give him reason to kill Brennan right then. All he needed was one hostage and an FBI Agent is so much more valuable, but women have their values too. He turned Brennan over on her back. She had a bloody lump on her forehead from the impact with the floor. "Have you ever noticed that women are so much more beautiful when they're asleep, unconscious ... ?" He brushed some hair away from Brennan's face. "... Or dead? They can't talk back. They can't fight back."

Booth wanted to climb through the airwaves and rip Angel's spine out. "Sleeping," he croaked out. Booth flashed on a mental image he had been carrying with him all day of Brennan curled up next to him. He hadn't really seen her with his eyes, but the feel of her fitting next to him formed a visual in his mind that he cherished. "They are beautiful when they sleep."

"puh-TEY-toh ... puh-tuh-toh." Angel cackled. "As long as they are not talking." For a guy who wouldn't say a word without his lawyer, he was talking up a storm now.

Booth's guts twisted up. "Senator Monroe," Booth said to get Angel to focus on anything else other than Brennan.

"You have twelve hours to get me Senator Wilson Monroe of Virginia," Angel demanded.

"I need more time."

"TOO BAD!" he screeched. "There are fates worse than death, Agent Booth. Maybe your pretty scientist doesn't need to die ... maybe she just needs to wish she were dead." He paused to see if Booth would respond. He didn't. "Good, we have an understanding ... since dear old dad will have to cross the Atlantic Ocean, I will give you eighteen hours."

"Thank you." The wheel's in Booth's head started spinning. He knew what the FBI would say. _We don't negotiate with terrorists._ They would not help him bring Senator Monroe back to the states. They would not facilitate turning him over to a murderer in exchange for a consultant and whoever Brennan was with. They would tell Booth to find him and take him out with extreme prejudice. Booth wanted the senator to facilitate if only to buy some time.

"You won't find us where we are, Booth ... but you will still need to figure it out. You're a bright boy, I suspect you have an idea right now. But I will leave this phone here and I'll call you on it - be sure that you are the one who answers it. Should I leave something else of the fair Dr. Brennan's behind so you believe that I have her? Is she left handed or right?"

"I believe you," Booth said hoping to keep the desperation out of his voice.

"Good boy. Oh, one more thing. I'll give you one warning. You screw up - and I get to be the one who decides what a mistake is - and someone dies; ladies first you know. You screw up again, and the other one dies. After that ... it really won't matter ... unless you don't catch me. For each day you don't ... someone dies unless I get bored. Do we have an understanding?"

"Yes." Angel was playing a game that Booth could not let him win.

"Tick Tock, Agent Booth ... better make some travel plans for Daddy." With that he ended the call.

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

Angel pulled Carson's ID out of his pocket. "Special Agent Henry Carson," he read. "Thank you for falling into my lap." Angel turned to the man standing behind him. "What?"

The man was big but slow - physically and mentally. "Who cares about your father ... we want his money," the man said.

"I want him dead."

"You're insane, Angel."

"So they keep telling me, Bobby Blue. So they keep telling me." He turned and looked at the two bodies on the floor. "Go bring the car around to the back. We need to get out of here." He paused but Bobby Blue didn't move. "NOW!"

"Bring the car around?" he asked. "We don't have a car."

"Go steal one, you idiot," he yelled. "Make sure it has a big trunk."

"We're taking these two?" he whined. "I didn't sign up for killing a cop."

"Hey ... they can only kill you once."

"Once is enough." He turned and lumbered down the hall.

Angel squatted down next to Brennan. "Yep ... prettier when they're silent." He stroked her face with the back of his hand almost lovingly. "So pretty."

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

Booth called Cam's cell directly.

"Dr. Saroyan," she said. Clearly she had not looked at the caller ID.

"Where is she, Cam?" Booth demanded to know.

"Booth, what's wrong?"

"Cam!" he snapped. "Where is Bones?"

"She went to Linda Monroe's apartment."

"Without me?" Booth hung a U-Turn causing cars in oncoming traffic to swerve out of the way. He flipped on the siren afterward. He was at least twenty minutes away from Monroe's apartment. Angel would be long gone. Booth couldn't alert the local police without spooking Angel and that could get Brennan killed. "Without a warrant?"

"The warrant came in," Cam said. "She went with Hank."

"Who's Hank?" Booth had completely forgotten about Henry Carson joining their little band of crime fighters.

"Carson ... Henry Carson."

"Why the hell would she do that? What was so damn important that they couldn't wait for me?" These were moot questions but Booth was raging mad and needed to get it out.

Cam had encouraged Brennan to go with Carson. She pushed it. "Booth, what's going on?"

"Angel made bail last night ... he's got, Bones!"

There was nothing Cam could say. She mumbled something about God but Booth wasn't listening.

"Get a team over there right now ... we need anything we can get from that place so I know what we are dealing with. And get Angela on the traffic cam thing she does. We don't know what he's driving or where he is headed but she should be able to narrow it down. He will be leaving Monroe's apartment right about now."

"Booth, the local police -."

"Not an option," he cut her off. "Do it Cam."

Booth ended the call with Cam. He called the FBI CSU and told them to go and facilitate processing the apartment with Jeffersonian team. Then he made the call to Caroline.

"Hey Cher, did you hear the news?"

"That Angel was let out on bail? How the hell did that happen, Caroline?"

"Hey, jump back there bucko ... had nothing to do with me ... that lawyer bought himself a judge using the senator's clout. Got the bail reduced."

"He has Bones, Caroline. Angel has Bones!"

"What are you talking about?"

"I don't know how ... all I know is that Angel has Bones and Carson."

"Who's Carson, now?"

"Agent Carson ... transfer from Seattle. My new FBI partner!" He was in no mood for explanations. "He wants the Senator Caroline. I have less than eighteen hours to get Senator Monroe back to the states for this guy or he is going to kill Bones. Hell, she may be dead already." Booth was becoming frantic. The traffic wasn't cooperating with his lights and siren. Horns were honking and tires were screeching. Caroline hear it all.

"Booth, Baby ... you need to calm your happy ass down or you are going to get yourself killed."

"Get him back here Caroline. I don't care how you do it. But get the Senator back in DC ASAP!"

"You got it cher," she said. "You know they aren't going to let you trade him."

"I won't need to trade him; I just need him to keep Angel on the phone."

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

Carson woke up when they threw him in the trunk. Brennan was next to him.

"Dr. Brennan," he called in a hushed tone. "Dr. Brennan," he said a little louder."

His hands were cuffed behind his back so he could not move very well. The two front doors slammed shut. The engine roared to life and the car took off. Carson was being tossed around the trunk like a back of groceries. He tried to brace himself in such a way as to limit the banging around Brennan would recieve.

"Dr. Brennan," he called again a little louder. "Come on, you've got to wake up." He nudged her face with his.

"Booth?" she groaned.

"No, Carson ... try to remember," he encouraged. "Are you OK?"

Brennan slowly came to consciousness. She started to panic as she realized she was in an enclosed space and her hands were bound. "What happened? Where are we? What is going on?"

"Calm down," he said. "Someone has kidnapped us. I assume it has to be Angel. We are in the trunk of a car. The only good news is that we're alive." He moved to give her more room to brace herself against the motion of the car. "How badly are you hurt?"

Brennan dropped into some anatomically correct description of the pain she was feeling in her back, shoulder and head. The only thing the Carson got was that she probably had a concussion since she was out. He tried to describe his injuries to her, but it was not out of Grey's Anatomy.

"Can you get your hands free?" He asked.

"No ... I don't think so ... no. Where is he taking us?"

"I don't know," he said. "My keys are in my pocket." He moved so that his pocket was close to her hands. It was not easy to do as they driver clearly wasn't concerned with taking corners smoothly or braking gingerly.

"We will suffer more damage in the trunk," Brennan observed.

"This maybe the only time we have alone," he groaned has his head bounced off the floor and up to the top of the trunk. "Can you reach in there and get them ... my keys. There is a penknife on the key ring too. Maybe you can cut yourself free and uncuff me."

With much struggling and false starts and straining as the car maneuvered its way through the city streets, Brennan was finally able to get her hand in his pocket and retrieve the key chain.

Just then the car made a turn, they were going up a slight grade and their speed picked up.

"The highway?" Carson observed.

"That would be my guess."

"We'll have to wait until they slow down to get out of here, but at least the ride might be a little smoother."

There was a drastic lane change and horns honking.

"Or not ... cut yourself free."

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

An hour later Booth paced Linda Monroe's apartment barking orders. He had Brennan's phone in his hand, holding onto it like a life line. Cam had tried to talk to him, to reassure him that Brennan was capable and that Carson was with her. The blood on the floor of the apartment did not reassure Booth. The five other dead women did not reassure Booth. The lack of leads didn't reassure Booth.

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

The car slowed as it approached the cabin ninety minutes after they were thrown in the trunk. Brennan was able to cut her hands free and uncuff Carson. They had a plan that they were not able to execute. They ran out of time. The car veered left and slid in some gravel on the side of the road. They powered up the last quarter mile up to the cabin, fishtailing all the way. The car finally came to a stop. This was their chance, but they couldn't run and they couldn't over power them without weapons. It had to be a surprise attack when the trunk opened. Carson just had to hope for the best. They hadn't heard anyone get out of the car, but the trunk sprang open. They were caught. It was as if Angel expected them to try to get away.

"Nice try, FBI," Angel said. "Make another move like that and you're dead." He laughed. "We'll you're dead anyway you look at it ... but where there's life there's hope, right? That's what my dear old mama would say." He nodded to the cuffs that were lying on the floor of the trunk. "Hitch yourself to the pretty scientist," he said. "Right hand to right hand," Angel instructed. When Carson had complied, Angel nodded to Bobby Blue to turn them so they were back to back. Another set of cuffs was produced from somewhere and their left hands were joined. Their arms were crisscrossed behind them. Carson's height made it very uncomfortable for Brennan; she was already in pain from the injuries to her shoulder from the bat that Angel had used earlier.

"Get them up to the cabin Bobby," he said. "If they try to escape again, kill em ... kill one but don't take the cuffs off for anything ... not even to take a piss. Got me?"

"Yeah, yeah ... I got you," said Bobby reluctantly. "Where are you going?"

"Need to take a look around."

Bobby took Brennan and Carson up the cabin and figured out a way they could sit down that was relatively comfortable. Carson started talking to him trying to bond with him.

"Shut up," Bobby said. "Just shut up. I may not like Scott, but he helped me out in prison and I owe him." He leaned down and whispered in Carson's ear. "And I don't like cops."

"You dislike cops enough to kill one? There is no parole for killing a cop," Carson said.

"I ain't doing shit for you ... I know your game ... just shut up or I'll take your mouth shut.

Angel came blasting into the cabin. "That bastard ... that bastard ... I told him ... I warned him ... no mistakes."

"What's your problem?" Bobby asked.

"Ranger Rick is on his way up here ... must have seen out dust trail." He leaned down to talk to Brennan only inches from her face. "Did your boy Booth send him up here? Is he really that good, or is Ranger Rick really that unlucky." He cocked his weapon. "If Booth sent him ... you can count how much time you have left in minutes, pretty lady." He grabbed the back of her head roughly and kissed her. Brennan bit him. "Bitch!" He slapped her hard across the face and put his weapon hand to his bleeding lip. He slapped her again just because. "You'll get yours, you bitch." He left.

Bobby went to the window to watch.

Carson asked Brennan if she was alright. "Fine," she said but she clearly wasn't.

With his tongue Carson pulled something out of the crease between his cheek and gum. It was the handcuff key. "This ought to help," he mumbled.

Brennan craned around to see what she was talking about. "The key?"

They moved in unison in Brennan's direction. He spit the key onto the floor between his legs and they moved back. It took him a little bit to find it, but he had the key. Now it was a matter of timing.

The sound a gunshot could be heard echoing through the woods; then two more. Moments later Angel blasted back in. "Let's go," he said to Bobby.

"What about them?"

"They ain't going anywhere." He looked at Brennan and touched his lip again. "You hang tight, sweet cheeks. Angel has a plan to teach you some manners."

They left the room. The car started and they drove away. Carson set to work on the cuffs.

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

There were fourteen hours left on Angel's clock. It had been four hours since Brennan was taken. The only new piece of information was that Angel appeared to have an accomplice. They found fingerprints matching Robert Anthony Dackerman. He was called Bobby Blue because of a blue birthmark on his face the size of a half dollar. He was a petty criminal and never been mixed up in anything like kidnapping, extortion or murder - at least not yet.

There was evidence that Angel had spent the night at Monroe's apartment and had made several calls to the senator all but one had been unanswered. Booth had contacted Caroline several times to find out about the senator's return but as yet he could not get confirmation that he was on his way.

Sweets walked into Booth's office. "How are you holding up, Agent Booth?" he asked.

Booth paused his pacing enough to glare at him and then resumed. There was nothing to say but that didn't stop Sweets.

"Are you sure you are the best agent to be running this investigation?"

Booth turned and advanced on Sweets. To his credit Sweets stood his ground, sort of. "Yes, Sweets," he stated forcefully. "First of all, Angel will only talk to me or Senator Monroe."

"Has he contacted you?"

"Not yet." Brennan's phone was still clutched tightly in his hand.

"Booth, I would be remiss if I didn't point out how extremely personal this situation is to you. This is why doctors don't operate on family members."

"Personal?" he bellowed. "Of course it's personal, the bastard took my partner."

"I assume you are referring to Dr. Brennan and not Agent Carson."

"Sweets, I don't have time for you and your little obsession with me and Bones right now." He flung Angel's file at Sweets. "Do your job and give me a profile on this guy."

"I am doing my job, Agent Booth," he said with as much command as he could muster. "I think you need to recuse yourself from this case."

"Case? Case? This is not a case, Sweets! A guy with nothing to lose is on a killing spree and he has Bones ... do you get that? He has Bones. She may be dead already." He said it. It made it real. He had to fight back the fear.

"Your emotional state is ... well you are ... you're extremely agitated. Dr. Brennan is more than your partner, isn't she?"

"Get off it Sweets ... you know the history ... this is Bones ... the rules don't apply."

"They must apply, Agent Booth. If you and Dr. Brennan have a personal relationship, you must recuse yourself from this case ... and if you don't, I will be forced to have you removed."

"What do you want to hear, huh Sweets? Do you want to hear that I'm in love with her? You know that, you wrote a damn book about it. Do you want to know that I would kill for her, that I would die for her? Been there, done that. So what do you want to know? Do you want to know that we are having sex? Does sex prove love to you in that adolescent super brain of yours? Fine. We're having sex. Do you want to know when, where, how often and if it is any good? Do you want all the sordid details, or can you use your imagination? What do you need to know? Do you think I would be any less ... what was the word you use? Agitated? Do you think I would be any less agitated three weeks ago? Three months ago? A year ago? If you do, then you need to go back to school, kid." Booth ran his hand through his hair. "When this is over, you stay as far away from me and Bones as you can get."

Sweets got his answer, but at what price? "I am recommending that you step down from this investigation," he stated.

One long stride and Booth was inches from Sweets. He put both hands on the young man's shoulders and shoved as hard as he could into the filing cabinets. Sweets was shocked and stunned into silence. "What did I tell you about threatening me? I am the only one who can do this!"

"He's right, cher," Caroline said in that Big Easy way of hers totally unimpressed by Booth's revelation or burst of aggression. She probably wanted to throw Sweets into a set of filing cabinets a time to two as well. "The senator is on the plane, Booth. He will only talk to you."

Booth stepped away from Sweets. "How long until he gets here?"

"He'll be here before the deadline," she stated. "But they won't let you get him within five hundred yards of Angel."

"I just need him on the other end of the phone." Booth shook his head. "I don't know where the hell Angel is."

"I do," said Angela. They all turned to look at the new person in the room. "He's in a blue Buick La Saber headed for the mountains. He is going back up to the cabin," she said.

"Are you sure?" Booth asked.

"Yes," she stated. "I can show you everything I have from the traffic cams."

"No, it won't be necessary."

"You need to get up there and take this guy out ... and I mean out of this world, Booth, before he can do anything to Brennan. Snipe his ass."

He reached for her arm and grasped it firmly. "We'll get her back, Angela." His statement was enough to reassure himself as it was for Angela.

"Booth?" Charlie stepped into the office. "I've got a ranger on the phone insists on speaking with you. Says it's about one of his rangers from up near Senator Monroe's cabin."

"Put him through to my cell," Booth demanded. Within seconds his phone was ringing. "Booth."

They all watched as Booth listened. His jaw clenched. His eyes grew dark. "No, do not approach," he said urgently. "In fact set up a perimeter around the cabin of one, make it five miles. No one near the cabin. No one in sight of it. I'll send some agents to help with the road blocks. Thank you, I'll be in touch." He ended the call and waited for a message to come through. He spoke to the room but kept his eyes focused on his phone. "John Hancock, a park ranger has been found dead. He was in his vehicle about six miles from the cabin. There was a note pinned to his chest addressed to me." The message came through. The color drained from his face as he looked that the image that was just sent to him. His heart froze. His knees buckled and he stumbled to fall back in to a chair.

"Booth?" Angela was the only one brave enough to ask. "Booth?"

He turned the phone toward her and showed the picture that had just come through. It was a note written in blood - or what appeared to be blood - that said.

_**Agent Booth, FBI - "Special" Agent.**_

_**Mistake #1.**_

Brennan's cell phone rang.

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

A/N: Sorry for another little cliffe ... all will be resolved in the next chapter. Promise. At least all the Scott Angel stuff.


	23. Chapter 23

**That's Why I'm Here**

By LizD

Written September 2011

**Chapter Twenty-three**

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

Carson helped Brennan up the side of the hill; his arm was wrapped securely around her waist supporting her. "There is a cave just up ahead," she said breathing hard clearly hoping to rest. It was clear that she was in pain, but in true Brennan fashion would not give into it.

"He knows about the cave," Carson said having. "And without a weapon we would be sitting ducks." He helped her to sit on a fallen tree trunk. "I need to find us some cover." He handed her some water that he had taken from the cabin. "They didn't bring any provisions, one or both of them are going to have to go out and get some."

"Where do you think they went this time ... and when do you think they will be back?"

"I think they went to get rid of the ranger's body and there is no telling how long they will be gone." She handed him back the container of water. He took a sip and put it in his pocket. "Can you walk?"

"I can." She tried to stand up on her own. Carson had to help her.

"You're an impressive woman, Dr. Brennan. Booth sure knows how to pick 'em." He inspected the wound on her head. "That looks really bad."

"Will need a CT scan ... and I think my shoulder is dislocated."

"I can pop it back in," Carson offered. "It will hurt like hell."

"It hurts now ... are you sure you know what you are doing?"

Carson smiled. "I'm not a bone person like you, but I have dislocated a shoulder a time or two and had to pop it back in." He touched her shoulder gently to survey the injury. "Piece of cake, doc. You ready?"

Brennan braced herself and gave a few final instructions. With one quick motion, Carson had popped the humerus back into place. Brennan didn't cry out she just groaned a little.

"Wow, lady. I have known grown men who cry like a baby going through that."

"I've had worse." She said gingerly moving her arm. "This will need to be immobilized and will cut down my speed."

Carson was already taking off his jacked. He deftly ripped it turning it into a sling. He secured her arm tightly to her chest. "Good?"

"Well done," she was surprised. "Very well done."

"Paid attention in the field medical portion of the program." He looked around. "There is usually a stream or something in the woods," he said. "Well at least in the movies. We could follow it to the road."

"There is a stream, but it's at the bottom of the gorge." She looked up into his face and saw that his jaw was completely swollen where the bat had made contact. He must have been moving away from the bat, as the full impact would have broken his jaw. "Are you alright?" She reached up to inspect the injury.

He moved his head way in that male fashion that proves they are tough. "Fine, fine. Won't be eating steak any time soon and my dentist bill is going to be through the roof. Pretty sure I broke a few crowns."

They started up the hill again. "When did you put the handcuff key in your mouth?"

"When we were in the trunk of the car and I was beginning to realize that it was unlikely we were going to be able to make a clean break. Was sort of hoping they would stop for gas or supplies or something. Wishes and horses," he said.

"I don't know what that means."

He cocked his head and looked at her not sure if she was serious. "If wishes were horses beggars would ride?" he said questioningly. "It's a saying ... actually think it is a nursery rhyme, but I don't know all of it ... something about turnips and watches and pots and pans. I don't know ... anyway, basically it means there is no point in wishing for something to happen. You need to make it happen."

"I see. I agree with that." Brennan really didn't understand what wishing, horses and beggars would have to do with each other. Booth would have been able to explain it to her better. "Thank you," she said.

"What for?"

"You were very ... gallant when we were stuck in the trunk. She shuttered at the memory. She was still affected by being enclosed in confided spaces. The dreams were the worse when she was in Maluku those first couple of months - well the first seven months, but they have been very infrequent since she came back.

"Yeah, gallant ... that's me," he said sarcastically.

"I was buried alive once for over twelve hours ... " she started to explain.

"Right, that Gravedigger thing ... I can't imagine what that would be like."

"With some good luck and combined efforts of the entire team, Booth was able to find us and save us."

"Us? You weren't alone?"

"Doctor Hodgins and I." She shook off the memory. "Anyway, you suffered a great deal to prevent me from being injured further. I appreciate it."

"Booth would kill me if anything happened to you." He laughed. "He's going to kill me anyway." Carson was embarrassed. "I never should have let that guy get the drop on us."

"There was no way we could have known he was there before we got there. You cleared the apartment. The angle of impact would suggest that he came from outside the apartment."

"How do you know that?" he asked.

"I am the best at what I do, Agent Carson."

He smiled at her. He was beginning to really like her - and that literal, honest, immodest way about her. "We need to meet again," he said playfully.

"How is that possible?"

"Just pretend ... Hello, I am Special Agent Henry Carson of the FBI ... people call me Carson, my friends call me Hammer, but you can call me Henry ... or Hank if you really want to get under my skin."

"Henry," she agreed. "I am Dr. Temperance Brennan of the Jeffersonian Institution. People call me Dr. Brennan," she said decisively. "But please call me Temperance."

"Temperance." He repeated. "A bit of a mouthful. Anyone call you Tempe?"

"My father, my brother ... Parker." She paused. "Angela calls me Brennan."

"Brennan? Better?" She nodded. "Fine, Brennan it is." He paused considering how he should start this next part. "I was a jerk the day we met," he said. "It was hard seeing Booth again. Haven't seen him in a good eight ten years and the academy was longer ago than that. We talk on the phone from time to time, but it's not the same."

"You two were good friends?"

"We were running mates, as we used to say in the Navy. We did shit together. Drank mostly. Got into trouble and helped each other out. We were pretty carefree back then." He smiled. "Ah youth."

"And sexual encounters with a variety of women were a main activity."

He was taken aback by her unsympathetic view of his younger days. "Yes, I suppose that is one way of saying it." He was holding something back. "Times change, people change, people grow up ... they discover and accept things about themselves that youth blinded them to."

"Are you talking about your homosexuality?" Brennan asked. "Or do you consider yourself a bisexual?"

He was almost shocked into denial, but decided to be as forthright as she was being. "I was skirting that issue but, Yes." He smiled at her. "How did you know?"

"I saw you at the marina with a man."

"Yes, I should have guessed. That was Jeffrey." He looked down and then back up at Brennan. "Does Booth know?"

She shook her head.

"Not that it matters really, we will probably die up here and it won't make a difference."

"Are you concerned that Booth will no longer be your friend because you are engaged in a homosexual relationship?"

"Say gay ... it's easier and less ... well it's just less."

"Less accurate," she stated. "Are you bisexual?"

He shook his head. "Nope. Denied it for a lot of years, but ... no. My ex-wife is pretty unforgiving. Which I get. I'd be pissed too. So Booth doesn't know?"

"No, but if you are concerned that he will shun you, I believe you are mistaken."

It wasn't the resounding approval that he was hoping for.

"I believe the FBI has a very open policy for homo- gay people," Brennan went on. "In spite of the federal legislation that is passed."

"It's just that Booth and I ... all we ever did was chase women and drink." He laughed at himself. "Funny, I did a lot of chasing, but I didn't catch as many as I told Booth I did. That should have been a clue, huh?"

She didn't understand what clue he was referring to. "You are not the only one who has changed, grown up, accepted things about themselves in the past number of years. I think you will find that Booth is quite a different man than he was back then."

"Is that because of you?"

She thought for a moment. "Booth believes that people leave marks on each other metaphorically. Even though Booth and I have only been engaged in a sexual relationship for a few weeks, I believe that the past eight years have had a great impact on both of us. Even when we were apart, I could see his influence on me, on my actions, on the way I viewed the people and situations around me. I believe I have made marks on him as well. I believe that some of these marks will never fade away." She looked away. She knew how frantic he would be to find her, but she needed to stay focused. "But I don't take responsibility for the change in Booth. I imagine that most of the change is the result of the passage of time."

"With age comes wisdom, eh?" Carson asked.

"Is that another one of your sayings?"

"Yes ... inaccurate too, but it is nice to believe."

"Are you considering asking Booth to enter into a sexual -."

"NO!" Carson stopped her quickly before anything else came out of her mouth. "NO. Not at all. I am in a very stable relationship with Jeffery and I believe that Booth only has eyes for you."

Brennan still didn't believe that completely, a pretty woman could certainly turn his head. She had faith that he wouldn't act on it. In any event, she felt very strongly that Booth was not gay.

Just then they heard a car coming up the road.

"Could have used a little more time to get some more distance between us and the cabin." Carson shook his head. "They'll be looking for us. We need to find you some cover."

"Where are you going?"

"I'm going back to see what they're doing." He read the concern on her face. "From a distance, I'll be back."

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

Angel and Bobby arrived at the cabin and found Brennan and Carson gone. Angel just laughed.

"They got away," Bobby screeched. "They'll go to the cops."

"They aren't going anywhere, you moron. There is no way they are going to make it down the mountain." He threw himself down on the couch.

"They are our only leverage."

"So ... Go find them," he ordered.

"What the hell man? I'm no Grizzly Adams. There could be bears and shit out there."

"If you see a bear - SHOOT IT. Go find them."

"How do I know which direction they went?"

"Footprints, Cochise. ... just get the hell out of here and find them. Don't come back until you do. They can't have gone far. That bitch can't walk. DAMN!" He said throwing a pillow across the room. "I should have taken their shoes ... what an idiot. Oh well ... go."

"You aren't going to help?"

"I'm doing all the work ... besides, I'm going to need to check in with Booth. Would be better if I had the bitch to whine to him to come save her, but it doesn't matter. That little message I sent him with tell him that I mean business."

"This was supposed to be about the money. I'm not into all this killing, Angel."

"Yeah, I know. You don't have the stomach for it. Can't believe you puked."

"Do you have a plan to get us out of here?" Bobby asked urgently.

He waved him off. "Go ... get the hell out of here. Go find them."

Bobby left the cabin.

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

Carson watched as Bobby looked around to see which way they went. Brennan had suggested that they cover their tracks and it appeared to be a good suggestion. Bobby went north, they had gone north. Carson stayed in his position a little bit longer. Shortly after Bobby was gone, Angel came out of the cabin. He looked north, south, east and west. He cocked his gun, checked the clip and headed south. Carson slipped out of his position and worked his way back to Brennan.

"Bobby could be headed this way. We'll be able to take him out. I want you to lure him to this clearing over here." He pointed. "And no matter what happens ... stay hidden. OK?" Brennan didn't agree, but took her place.

They took their positions. Thirty minutes later Bobby was tramping up the hill toward their location. Brennan made some noise that attracted Bobby. He entered the clearing headed in the direction of Brennan. Carson came out from behind a tree and took him down, stuffing a piece of his jacket in his mouth to keep him from crying out and putting the cuffs on him. Carson stood up and was about to call to Brennan to tell her it was safe when he heard a weapon cock right behind his ear.

"Nicely done, FBI ... now let him go." Angel said.

Carson didn't move. He was trying to determine how close Angel was to him and if he take him.

The muzzle of the weapon was shoved into the base of his neck. "Let. Him. Go."

Carson uncuffed Bobby and sat down on the ground away from him.

"Where is the scientist lady?"

"She's gone. Down the mountain."

Angel laughed. "HEY! Olly olly oxen free," he called. Carson wondered if Brennan knew what that meant, but hoped she would say hidden. "He's dead in ten seconds if you don't show your face." He paused. "Ten. Nine. Eight. Seven. Six."

Brennan stood up and came into the clearing. "I'm here," she said noticing the disappointment on Carson's face.

"Good girl," Angel said smugly. "Back to the cabin." He looked a Bobby who was rubbing his head. "Loser. Cuff them."

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

"Booth?" Charlie stepped into the office. "I've got a ranger on the phone insists on speaking with you. Says it's about one of his rangers from up near Senator Monroe's cabin."

"Put him through to my cell," Booth demanded. Within seconds his phone was ringing. "Booth."

They all watched as Booth listened. His jaw clenched. His eyes grew dark. "No, do not approach," he said urgently. "In fact set up a perimeter around the cabin of one, make it five miles. No one near the cabin. No one in sight of it. I'll send some agents to help with the road blocks. Thank you, I'll be in touch." He ended the call and waited for a message to come through. He spoke to the room containing Caroline, Angela, Charlie and a shaken Sweets. Booth kept his eyes focused on his phone. "John Hancock, a park ranger has been found dead. He was in his vehicle about six miles from the cabin. There was a note pinned to his chest addressed to me." The message came through. The color drained from his face as he looked that the image that was just sent to him. His heart froze. His knees buckled and he stumbled to fall back in to a chair.

"Booth?" Angela was the only one brave enough to ask. "Booth?"

He turned the phone toward her and showed the picture that had just come through. It was a note written in blood - or what appeared to be blood - that said.

_**Agent Booth, FBI - "Special" Agent.**_

_**Mistake #1.**_

"Booth!" Angela said urgently. "What does that mean? Booth?"

Brennan's cell phone rang. The room was so quiet you could hear a pin drop. Booth slowly reached over and before answering it nodded to Charlie to start the trace. "Booth," he said turning away from the group.

"Hey Booth ... did you get my message?" Angel drawled.

"I did."

"I told you what would happen."

"You did."

"So you know where we are?"

"Yes."

"And you know we don't want to be disturbed."

"I understand and have done what I can do to ensure that."

"Better be enough, Booth," he snapped. "Don't want to have to send any more messages."

"I understand."

"Where is Daddy Dearest?"

"On a flight back to DC. He should be here in six hours."

"Great ... well then I guess we have a few hours to kill. Words with Friends?"

"I'd like to speak with Dr. Brennan," Booth said evenly pretending that he had forgotten what the penalty was for making a mistake.

"She is unavailable for comment at this time," Angel said.

Booth bit his tongue, literally as well as figuratively. "I will need to be sure that both Dr. Brennan and Agent Carson are unharmed before I can bring the Senator to you."

"You'll just have to trust me," Angel snarled.

"I would like to speak to Dr. Brennan," Booth stated again evenly fighting to maintain control over his voice.

"They are both alive, Booth," Angel admitted. "A little worse for the wear," he laughed. "But they are still breathing - at the moment."

"I need to speak with Dr. Brennan," Booth said again.

"Sure ... sure ... have a little chat ... just remember who has the gun pointed at her temple."

Booth tensed waiting for the phone to be turned over.

"Booth?" Brennan said.

The sound of her voice sent a waive of relief through his body. "Bones. You OK?" The rest of the people in the room with Booth let out the breath they were holding.

"Yes," she said weakly. She would have described her injuries, but they were immaterial at the moment.

"Carson?" he asked.

"He's Ok too," she said.

"It will be OK. You trust me?"

"I do."

"Is he listening?"

"No."

"We know where you are. I'm coming to get you."

"When is the senator arriving?" she asked so as not to give what Booth was saying away.

"Told him six hours. But it won't be that long, OK? Can you hang in there? Just a little while longer?"

"Yes."

Angel snatched the phone away. "Did you tell her you were coming to save her? Well you better think long and hard about that, Boothy Boy. I better not see so much as a hiker or a squirrel passing this cabin and the next time we speak, you better be calling me to tell me that you are bringing Monroe here."

Sweets had held up a piece of paper to Booth. Booth nodded. "Do you need anything up there? Food, water?"

Angle laughed. He liked being in control. "Yeah, I could eat. You have to deliver it ... by yourself."

"I need to wait for the senator, but I can send another agent."

"Another hostage for me bearing gifts?" He paused. "Think you better deliver it yourself, Booth. Fine. Pizza? Deli? Chinese?" He was just talking while the wheels in his brain were spinning.

"Yah know ... I haven't had good Deli in a while."

"Fine."

"You have two hours, Booth. That will give you plenty of time to get back and meet Daddy at the plane."

"Two hours, where?"

"Mile marker 69. I'll send my boy Bobby Blue to meet you. If anything happens to him ... if he is not back in five minutes, you know what happens."

"I do."

"Great ... talk to you later," he said gleefully and ended the call.

Booth looked at Charlie. "Get me a helicopter ready." He turned to Angela. "That thing ... that program that Broadsky used to track the cell and use it to target, can you do that for any phone?"

"Sure, I just need the number."

Booth handed her Brennan's cell. "I need it now Angela ... like now."

"You got it." She took down the number and left.

Booth went to his closet and pulled out his sniper rifle that he had just gotten back from the forensics department after the Broadsky killing.

"Booth, what are you doing?" Sweets asked.

"I have less than two hours, Sweets. No time to explain. But I'll need you to take my place on the food run."

"Me? Why me?"

"Cause your here ... and I will need you to convince Bobby Blue that he is in over his head."

"What's the plan, chér?" Caroline asked.

"I'm going to take a position on the ridge above the cabin, when Bobby Blue leaves to get the food, Angel will be alone with Brennan and Carson. With the targeting program that Angela is getting for me, I can pinpoint his location and take him out. One shot. One kill."

"Sounds like a bad plan, chérie," Caroline said. "What if you miss? What if your bullet passes through Dr. Brennan on the way to Angel's heart?"

"I can do this, Caroline." Booth said. "I have to do this."

"How are you going to get to the ridge without alerting him?" Sweets asked.

"Army Ranger Sniper ... this is what I do."

"Correction, this is what you did. Do you really want to risk Dr. Brennan and Agent Carson's life on this?"

"You tell me Sweets? What's the profile on this guy? What's he after?"

"Retribution against his father."

"Is he smart? Did he think this through? Was this the plan all alone?"

"No, this appears to be very opportunistic."

"Does he have an escape plan? Does he imagine that he will live through this, or is this just some elaborate suicide-by-cop thing for Angel hoping that some of the blood will stain Senator Monroe which will give Angel his retribution."

"Possibly."

"Every second they are with him, they are in danger. He could have killed her as soon as we hung up thinking that he didn't need her anymore. We don't have six hours to wait, Sweets and I don't have time to stand here and argue with you. Are you going to do this or do I need to get someone else?"

"I'll do it," Sweets said.

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

Ninety minutes later Booth was in position on the ridge above the cabin about a thousand yards away. Angela had sent him the program and he had it set up on his targeting device. His ear bud was in his ear and he was reporting what he saw to Sweets, Caroline, a few agents, rangers, local police and EMTs down at the bottom of the hill. Booth looked through his field glasses. He saw four heat signatures in the cabin. That was a relief - they were all still alive. Two were close together and not moving. That must be Brennan and Carson. One was pacing and the other was reclined near the two. That must be Angel - sick bastard. The cabin was small, and Booth would have preferred that the four were further apart. He would have to talk Angel in to moving.

"Booth, are you sure about this?" Sweets said. Booth hated hearing sweets in his ear piece, made it sound like Sweets was in his head.

"Just deliver the food and keep him down there. Divide and conquer, right Sweets?"

"Right."

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

"I don't like this," Bobby said. "I don't like this at all."

"What's not to like. They are delivering us food. Who knew that the FBI delivered?" He looked to Brennan and Carson. "Oh Gee, I hope they bring enough for four," he said sarcastically.

"I'm not hungry," Brennan said.

"You will need to keep up your strength we have a few hours to wait for Daddy."

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

Booth was watching from the ridge. "Make the call," he ordered. The call was placed from Brennan's cell to the prepaid cell that Angel was using. It was relayed through Booth's ear piece. The officers at the bottom of the hill could hear everything.

"Booth, you're early."

"The lights were with me," he barbed back. "Everyone alright?" He could see Angel - the man holding the cell - get up from his reclined position and move closer to the two on the floor.

"Fine, fine ... we are just sitting around shooting the breeze."

"I've got your food. Gonna bring it up."

"Hope you got some chips too ... and pickles. It ain't deli without pickles."

"I didn't pick out the menu."

"I'm crushed," he cackled. "I'll send Bobby Blue here down to pick it up. He has fifteen minutes to get down to mile marker 69 and back with the food." He shoved the gun in Carson's head. "You know what happens if he's late."

"Remind him that he shouldn't stop to smell the roses, huh?"

Angel laughed and ended the call. Booth watched through the binoculars as the heat signatures moved around the cabin. He thought he was able to track which one was Angel but there was some pushing and shoving and he couldn't be sure. Eventually one pulled one of the persons sitting on the floor to standing and took whoever it was to the car with him. Booth watched the car drive away. He had six minutes before Bobby Blue knew that Booth was not the delivery boy - not that he knew what Booth looked like, Booth was counting on that. Booth continued to watch the cabin. There was one person still on the floor and the other was pacing. Pacing? Booth turned his attention to the car.

"Dial him again ... Angel is in the car!"

The call rang and was connected. Booth was right, Angel was in the car and he had either Brennan or Carson with him - probably Brennan.

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

Angel had the gun pointed at Brennan as he sat in the passenger seat. He pulled the phone out. "Booth, I shouldn't be driving and talking on the phone ... no hands free. Don't want to break the law."

"I'll put in a good with for you with the authorities."

"Did you call for a reason?"

"Thought you were sending Bobby down for the food."

"I'm unpredictable," he said glancing toward the road taking his eyes off Brennan.

Brennan took that opportunity to speed up quickly and then slam on the breaks skidding in the dirt road throwing Angel off balance. Luckily it was her left arm in the sling, with her right free she swung over and knock the weapon out of Angel's hand. She sped up again and this time she ran into a tree. Only the driver's side airbag deployed and Angel was knocked against the windshield. Someone must have turned off the passenger side bag. Angel was stunned but not unconscious. Brennan was able to get out of the car and start moving away. Angel was not far behind her.

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

Booth watched in horror as the car sped, braked, sped and slammed into a tree. Through the scope he saw the driver get out and believed it was Brennan. He saw the passenger get out and give chase. Booth had his target and he took his shot. Three feet from where Brennan had fallen when she tripped over a root, Angel fell dead on the ground. Booth turned his attention back to the cabin to see that the two left in there were fighting. "Move in!" Booth ordered.

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

Brennan had slipped the handcuff key into Carson's hand just before Angel dragged her away. As soon as they had driven away, Carson let himself out of the handcuffs. The shot from Booth's rifle was all he needed to get the drop on Bobby Blue. Bobby did not go down without a fight, but Carson was able to take him down.

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

By the time Booth made it down to the road, Brennan was being treated by the EMTs. He was horrified by her injuries: the open wound on her head, her arm, scrapes on her arms, face and legs. She would definitely need some TLC to recover and he would be there to give it to her.

"Hey," he said approaching trying not to get in the EMTs way. "How is she?" he asked not taking his eyes off of her.

"Very lucky." The EMT finished. "She'll need to go to the hospital. X-rays, CT Scan ... she's gonna have a head ache for a few days."

"I'm fine, Booth."

"Hey Booth," Carson said. "Nice shot." The men shook hands.

Booth noticed his jaw. "That looks bad."

"Nothing that a new bridge won't fix and a month worth of milkshakes and mashed potatoes." He nodded to Brennan. "You've got one hell of a woman there," he said smiling at her.

"I know." They shook hands again and Carson moved off.

Booth waited for the EMT tech to leave. He took her good hand and sat down next to her. He looked very concerned about her injuries.

"Booth, really ... I'm fine."

"You are anything but fine and that stunt you pulled back there with the car ... that could have gotten you killed."

"I knew you were there. I knew you were watching me."

"No, you didn't."

She leaned closer to him. "I believe I felt your eyes on me."

"This coming from Super Squint? How hard did you hit your head?" He laughed and brushed some hair back off her face lightly touching around the wound that had just been treated.

"I was unconscious for a while ... a long while."

"Any dreams?" he teased. He was so happy he was alive he felt like he could play with her.

"No, Booth ... why would I dream?"

"No reason. We're taking you to the hospital."

She tightened her grip on his hand. "Will you ride with me?" she pleaded.

"Not going to let you out of my sight ever again," he said leaning in and kissing her gingerly on the lips.

"That is a little unreasonable, but I would really appreciate you riding with me now."

Booth choked up. He had been holding it in for a very long time. "I was scared," he said simply. "I was terrified that something would happen to you ... I mean ... "

"That I was going to die." Her eyes welled with tears too. "I was scared too."

"Don't ever go out into the field without me again," he ordered.

"Henry was actually very helpful. I believe he did all he could to keep us alive." She smiled a little. "You are still the best FBI agent, but if you were with me, who would have killed Scott Angel?"

"Just ... please ... promise me ... with me or don't go out, OK?"

"Ok." They folded into an embrace as much as they could with Brennan's arm in a sling. "I love you," she whispered into his ear.

"I love you too," he answered easily.

"Thanks for saving me."

"Always."

The fallout would come later, they were just happy to be alive and together.

**x|x x|x x|x**

Sweets and Caroline watched from a distance. "You want to break those too up?" she asked of Sweets.

"Not personally, but I would be remiss if I didn't address it professionally."

"Remiss, my fat ass!" Caroline barked. "You're just jealous. Take some of your own advice boy ... go see a shrink." Caroline stormed off.


	24. Chapter 24

**That's Why I'm Here**

By LizD

Written September 2011

**Chapter Twenty-four**

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

Booth sat in arguably the most uncomfortable plastic chair ever made. He was in Brennan's room; she was not there. She had gone down for 'tests.' He had his elbows on his knees, head down over his hands, fingertips pressed fingertips, before folding down into the church gesture. _Here's the church. Here's the steeple. Open the doors and you see all the people_. He repeated like a mantra. He couldn't let his mind form the words he was terrified to hear, so he repeated: _Here's the church. Here's the steeple. Open the doors and you see all the people._ He needed to go to church. He needed to pray, confess and thank God for sparing Brennan's life one more time. How many times could he do that? How many times could she survive mortal danger? Why should she have to? There were everyday dangers that all people must risk to live: crossing the street, taking a shower, driving a car. Why did the world renowned forensic anthropologist have to put her life in danger to catch murders? She was too valuable to lose. There was only one person like her in the world, how reckless to expose her to such danger. She shouldn't be in the field. She never should have been in the field. Yes, as an anthropologist she had been to all parts of the world and in far more dire circumstances all in the name of science: Guatemala, Chile, Maluku. She fought soldiers and armed guerillas and luckily came back alive. When would her luck run out? Wasn't she just risking her life needlessly? The world would suffer if she were gone.

That's right Booth, it was all about how the world would suffer if Dr. Temperance Brennan were killed under your watch because she was so important. Right.

_Here's the church. Here's the steeple. Open the doors and see all the people._

Other words were forming. He stood and crossed to the window. It was a warm spring afternoon in DC - late afternoon, the sun was almost ready to set. It was a Monday - was it still Monday? Yes, it was Monday. Another bad guy down. Booth would need to file his report. It was another sniper shooting in the name of justice. This time he had to kill the guy. Would that be an issue? Did he really have to kill Scott Angel? Or did he just kill him because he might have killed Brennan? Was there any other way? He didn't kill Broadsky. Would he have if Broadsky had Brennan in his crosshairs? Did he need to ask? Broadsky would have been history. Would he have taken the kill shot if Angel had Carson? Scott Angel had killed five women - he had proof. Scott Angel was bent on destruction and didn't care who he took down in his path. All Angel wanted was to talk to Senator Monroe - or kill Senator Monroe. That was reason enough to take him out. Did Booth have to kill him? What would the bureau say? What would they say when they found out that he and Brennan were ... were ... were together? Would this be what pushed the bureau over the edge enough to break up their partnership, or terminate his services? Hell, they could bring him up on charges.

That's right Booth, it was all about your job and what the bureau would say because you took out a murderer who would have killed your partner - hell she wasn't even really his partner. She was a civilian consultant.

He turned away from the window and looked at the empty bed. Tears welled up in his eyes. His stomach turned into a knot. His jaw clenched. That's right Booth, that's what it's about. It's about Bones being gone from your life because you couldn't protect her. They had just accepted that they wanted more. They had just started working on the million issues that they would have to work through to be together. Booth had accepted that it would be work being with her. He wanted that work. He wanted it for the rest of his life. He wanted more than that - he wanted fifty years. He would settle for nothing less than thirty - come what may, hell or high water.

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

"Are you pregnant?" the technician asked Brennan with the clipboard cradled in her arm.

Brennan didn't answer.

"Dr. Brennan? These are routine questions, but for a reason." She paused again waiting to see if Brennan would answer. "Could you be pregnant?"

Brennan continued to look at the very nice technician.

"You are sexually active," the technician stated.

"Why do you assume that?"

"If I had a guy looking at me the way your guy was looking at you, we'd never leave the house."

"We are partners," Brennan evaded.

"Don't care what you call it," she countered. "You're using contraception."

Brennan was still reluctant to answer.

"Well, that's a some-of-the-time face if I ever saw one." She laughed. "With a guy like that, I can see how logic and reason would go flying out the window with my panties too. So you could be pregnant," the technician concluded.

Brennan couldn't put words to it. She couldn't say it out loud. She couldn't even think it. Yes, she wanted a child. Yes, Booth was amenable to that possibility too. But the timing was wrong. It was too soon. They had so much to get through before they could even discuss having a child in any kind of practical way. It was a goal, it was out there, but it wasn't now.

"Should we do the test?" the technician asked. "Pee or blood."

"No," Brennan protested. "No, I don't need a test."

"So you're saying you aren't pregnant."

Brennan snapped back to herself - Queen of Compartmentalization. "An MRI rather than a CT Scan for my head, and one X-Ray for my shoulder."

"Right. Better safe than sorry, huh?" She flashed Brennan a knowing smile. "But it might be too late for that. Ignorance isn't always bliss, and it will catch up with you. Being pregnant is not like having a cold."

"May we continue?" Brennan said coldly.

Brennan lay on the cold table waiting for the MRI. Her mind was racing with the day's events. There was no warning. She wasn't prepared to die. She flashed on Vincent. She flashed on Vincent lying in a pool of his own blood and begging to stay. She heard Booth explaining that Vincent wasn't ready to go. Brennan wasn't ready to go either. Her life was finally opening up for her. She was actually happy. She got out of their bed that morning, happy, content, sexually satisfied and looking forward to work and then after work. Like a normal person, living a normal life. She wanted to stay. Tears dripped out of the corners of her eyes. She got to stay. She was luckier than Vincent. She got to stay - this time.

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

Her mood was still low when she was brought back to the room; it lightened when she saw Booth. He smiled that special smile and their eyes locked just like they always did and for them there was no one else in the world.

When they were alone he sat down on the bed, on her good side and held her hand. "You OK?"

"They want to keep me here overnight for observation, but it does not appear that -." Her words dropped off. She didn't want to expect it in technical terms and she didn't have the energy to translate. "I'm fine."

"I'll stay with you," he volunteered.

"No, Booth. I'm fine. Really. They are going to give me something to sleep."

"You don't like taking sleeping pills. You say they keep you up."

"When did I say that?"

"Years ago. I can't remember."

"I don't remember telling you that."

"I remember everything you told me ... everything." He smiled but his eyes betrayed his solemn mood.

"There are some things I would wish that you would forget."

"I'm OK with our history, Bones," he said. "I'm OK with our history as long as we focus on the future. Deal?"

She smiled weakly at him. "Deal."

He paused for a moment. "We need to talk ... talk about today and what happened."

"I know." She pressed his hand with both of hers. "I'm sorry you had to kill Angel."

"I did what I had to do."

"Still, I wish you didn't have to kill him."

"I haven't made my report yet."

"Will there be a problem?"

"Sweets knows about us."

"Will that make a difference?"

"A case can be made that I wasn't acting like a dispassionate agent." He looked down. "I shoved Sweets into the filing cabinets. He was threatening to split us up."

"Can he do that? I don't work for the FBI."

Booth took a deep breath and let it out slowly. "Maybe he has a point."

"Who? Sweets?" She didn't understand. "You think we shouldn't be partners?"

"I think maybe you shouldn't be in the field ... as much."

"I'm more effective in the field."

"I know. Believe me ... I know what you can do. I know that you see things that no one else would see or understand that it was important. I know." He smiled. "I've worked with you for years, Bones." He took another quick breath. "I'm not saying this lightly."

"I think you are. I think you are reacting to a very stressful day."

"Bones, I don't know if I could honestly say that it would have gone down the same way if Angel were holding another agent or a stranger. I saw you running from him. I saw him gaining on you. I took the shot." He shook his head. "Scratch that. I climbed up on that hill with that rifle knowing exactly what I was going to do the first second I was given the opportunity." He wiped a hand across his face.

"I wouldn't put that in your report," Brennan said quietly.

Booth looked at her and they both burst out laughing. He leaned in and kissed her ending it by pressing his forehead against hers. "I was so scared."

"I was too," she said weakly. "He was a sociopath, Booth. He would have killed us. He would have killed anyone who got in his way."

"I know."

"You can put that in your report."

Booth smiled and kissed her again. "Why didn't you wait for me?"

"If you had been with me, it would have been you and I in that cabin and who would have saved us?"

"That's not an answer."

"Dr. Saroyan said we needed the process Linda Monroe's apartment, Henry was there with the warrant, there was no indication that it could have gone down the way it did. Scott Angel was supposed to be in jail. You were supposed to be interviewing him."

"Ok ... ok ... enough for now." He brushed his fingers down her cheek. "I would just like some time alone with you with no drama. No big changes ... nor more big changes. Just some time."

"I understand."

"It just feels like we haven't had time to catch our breath. Have we even been on our date yet?"

"Not as such, no."

He got very serious. "I want time. I want to be easy with you. To wake up slowly with you and go through a normal day."

"Our normal days are pretty abnormal compared to the rest of the world."

He sighed. "True. But it is something we can aim for."

"Yes." She brightened her smile. "I too would like to wake up slowly with you and go through an uneventful day."

"You saying being with me is uneventful?" He teased. "You think I can't keep you entertained."

"I never suggested such a thing." She leaned up to kiss him, he closed the gap between them.

"You will get to come home tomorrow?"

"Yes. Just overnight for observation." She nodded to the door. You should go. Write your report. Get some sleep. I'll see you in the morning."

"I'm not leaving you, Bones."

"That's not reasonable."

There was a knock on the door and it opened slowly. Henry Carson stepped in. "Bad time?" he asked.

"No, please come in," Brennan said. "How's your jaw?"

"Hurts like hell, but they gave me some pills and told me not to eat any peanut brittle for a while." He scanned her. "You OK?"

"They are keeping me for observation, but I will be fine. Thank you."

Carson looked a Booth. "I'm sorry, man."

"Bones told me what happened. Not your fault."

"Not how it feels."

"I'm glad you were there," Booth said genuinely.

"Why don't you two go have a post case drink," Brennan suggested.

"No, Bones. I told you I wasn't leaving."

"They will make you leave. Please. Go. I need some sleep."

"You sure?"

"I am." She nodded.

"Ok. I'll be back though. Just an hour. Maybe two."

"Go," she urged.

He pressed her hand and wanted to kiss her, but felt odd with an audience for some reason. "OK."

"Take care, Brennan," Carson called.

Booth snapped his attention to Carson. "That's Dr. Brennan to you," he said playfully.

"She told me I could call her Brennan," he defended. "Told me I couldn't call her Bones."

"Damn right, you can't call her Bones." Booth pushed him out of the room.

Brennan put her head back against the pillows. Her head was throbbing. She hoped she could sleep. Time. Time to be easy. Time to be normal. Yes, she wanted that too.

Booth slipped back into her room. Wordlessly he approached the bed, placed his hands gently on her face, looked deeply into her eyes. He smiled that smile that melted her heart the first time she saw it. "I love you," he said as if it explained all the questions of the universe. Then he kissed her deeply.

She countered he statement of love. Kissed him back and sent him on his way. They may never get their time to be easy, to be normal, but the intensity kept them in their seats for all the ups and down. They didn't want to miss a minute.

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

**A/N: Short chapter, but I wanted to get something out before the weekend. I will be gone. I don't thank the reviewers enough or the people who ALERT or FAVORITE this story. Thank you all. Feedback is a wonderful thing and the only compensation a fanfic write gets. Thank you. **


	25. Chapter 25

**That's Why I'm Here**

By LizD

Written September 2011

**Chapter Twenty-five**

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

Brennan tried to sleep but each time she closed her eyes she was back in the trunk, back in the car, back underground - out of control, helpless, dependent. She rationally talked away her fear. Angel was dead. The gravedigger was dead. She was safe. Booth was safe. Hodgins and Carson were safe. The more she rationalized reasons not to be afraid, the more dread she felt. There was something looming just out of sight. Something she didn't want to see, didn't want to recognize, didn't want to know. This something or someone was just beyond her periphery that would impact everything irrevocably and forever. She wasn't ready for it.

Her life was changing, changing fast - too fast. This thing with Booth turned on a dime and was now moving faster than a freight train – metaphorically speaking. She had thought about being with him for so long that she never considered what would happen after. She had almost convinced herself it would never happen, but it did. He seemed happy. He seemed OK with the changes. He wasn't pushing for anything except more time with her; but something was pushing her. She couldn't help the feeling that she was being pushed fasted, farther and harder than she wanted to go and there was no stopping it.

She got out of bed. She couldn't stay there. She wanted to go to the lab – to bury herself in work, but she didn't want to have to deal with the people. She couldn't stay in the hospital. She would go home to her own space safe and secure. There was no reason she needed to stay. She checked the closet for her clothes, only her jeans and shoes were there. They had cut her shirt away. She didn't care. She would leave the hospital anyway.

"Where do you think you're going?" Angela asked from the doorway as she caught Brennan trying to pull on her jeans with one hand. "They haven't released you."

"I need to go home, Angela," she stated but it was partially a plea for help.

"Sweetie," Angela started to scold until she saw the look on Brennan's face. "Ok." She pulled off the cardigan she was wearing and helped Brennan into it. It was no fashion statement but she could get home without drawing attention to herself. Angela made a mental note to call Booth because she knew Brennan wouldn't. Booth would blow a gasket if he came back to the hospital and found her gone.

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

Booth and Carson entered the bar. It was a pool hall actually. Booth felt no urge to play.

"Hey Booth … you still got it?" Carson asked nodding to the table.

Booth looked over at the table. "No … no, I don't." He nodded for them to take a seat at the bar. "Truth be told, Hank, I quit." Booth popped a few peanuts into his mouth. "Had to. Taking over my life."

"Really?"

"Really." Booth raised two fingers to the bartender indicating he wanted two beers. "Beer OK with you?"

"Yeah," Carson said. "For now."

The bartender placed the bottles down in front of them and walked away. The clicked the glass and drank. "So," Booth said after a moment. "What the hell happened?"

Carson paused. He knew that Booth's reaction in front of Brennan was not going to be all, so here it was. He took a deep breath and let it out slowly and then told Booth everything that happened in the minutest detail. Booth listened, asked a few questions but not many. When he was done Carson wait for Booth to say something – or hit him.

"Ok," he said. "Your report should read just like that."

"My report?"

"Yes." He drained his beer.

"This wasn't about what I told the Bureau, Booth," he exclaimed. "Or what I put in my report."

"No, it wasn't." Booth ordered two more beers. "One more thing. Don't ever take Bones out into the field again, got it?" He tried to say it cheerfully, but the intent was clear. He was pissed.

"Message received."

"It needs to be."

"I got it."

"She's more than my partner, Carson."

"I get it, Booth."

"I hope you do, because when Sweets asks you what happened, I don't want you varying from what you just said."

"What does Sweets have to do with this?"

"He's going to try to break us up … me and Bones – professionally. That's why he had you transferred in."

"I see."

"I don't care if you are added to the mix … frankly, I can see where you would be a lot of help." He shot him a look to let Carson know he was serious. "But Bones and I are not negotiable. Sweets doesn't think so and I don't want anyone helping him for the issue with the suits upstairs."

"I get it."

"Good." Booth rubbed his hand through his hair. "Thanks," he said almost under his breath.

"Don't thank me, Booth. I never should have let it happen."

"No, you shouldn't have," he nearly shouted. "But I'm glad you were with her."

"She's a hell of a woman," Carson said. "Direct."

Booth laughed. "Ya think?" They both laughed together.

"That's different in a woman," Carson said. "In my experience … which hasn't been -." He stopped himself.

"Hasn't been what?" Booth asked.

"I've been off the market for a while."

"Since Claudia and you broke up? So there is another woman. I thought for sure that's what broke you two up. But that was a long time ago. You still with the same woman?"

Carson bit his tongue. He was going to evade or obfuscate but decided that he needed to come clean. It couldn't come out later any better than it could come out now; and later would be harder to explain after the lies. Brennan knew, how long before she told Booth in some harmless way. "Brennan is pretty observant," he said. "Very observant."

"You have no idea," Booth said. "And she thinks a lot too … too much sometimes."

Carson had didn't know how to start the conversation. "How about a shot, huh?"

"Sure, you're buying."

"I am?"

"You bet."

"Right, I guess I am." He ordered two shots of Jack Daniels and suggested that the bartender not take the bottle too far away. He decided that the band-aid approach was the best – fast and clean. "Booth, Claudia and I split up over infidelity – true. But it wasn't another woman, it was another man."

"Oh shit, Hank. Sorry. That sucks. So what is Claudia so pissed off about if she cheated on you?"

"No, Booth. It wasn't Claudia who cheated." Carson waited as Booth processed the information.

A puzzled look crossed Booth's face. "Oh? … Oh. … OH!" He looked away quickly and then looked back. "Are you telling me …? You aren't suggesting that … I mean … What the hell, Hank? Are you gay?"

Carson nodded. "I am."

"Seriously?"

"Seriously."

Booth waved for another shot and downed it quickly. "Well, ya know it makes sense now."

"What makes sense?"

"Well, after that weekend in Philly I ran into the Sabitino sisters."

"You're kidding."

"No … not quite as pretty sober, I'll give you that. But Shelly, or Shelia or Sharon … whatever her name was said that you didn't close the deal with her." Booth almost laughed. "Heard that from quite a few of your women."

"Yeah, well … was still in denial at that point, I guess."

Booth turned to face him. "So … am I supposed to say something?"

"Like what?"

"Don't know … never been on this side of a conversation like this before."

"Ever been on the other side?"

Booth laughed. "No … no can't say that I ever have nor do I ever expect to be." He got curious. "Is this why Claudia and Rita are so pissed at you?"

"Yeah." Carson looked down. "But Rita called me the other day, so who knows, she might be coming around."

"Shit … sorry. But teenagers … you know … they're hard."

"Yeah, well … the things you deal with." He ordered two more shots. "Do you ... are you OK with this?"

Booth shrugged. "Yeah, sure … I mean, you aren't going to hit on me or anything are you?"

"No … not likely."

"Why not? What's wrong with me?" He looked into the bar mirror and futzed with his hair. "Not pretty enough for you?"

Carson smiled grateful that Booth could joke with him. "Just not my type."

"Right. Your TYPE! Whole new type." He shook his head. "Doesn't matter … I'm taken."

"Me too," he said. "Ten years next month."

"Really … wow … longer than you were with Claudia."

Carson nodded. Carson raised his glass. "Here's to our S.O.s."

Booth drank the shot and took a hit off his beer.

"Brennan knows," Carson said. "She saw me with Jeffery down at the Marina."

"She didn't say anything to me." Booth shrugged. "But she wouldn't. That's not her way." Booth smiled thinking about Brennan. He was happy – in some weird way. "So tell me about this guy."

Carson was confused. "You really want to know?"

"Hey, you're gonna be my partner too. It will come up."

Carson relaxed. "Ok."

"Don't go all touchy feely on me … just, you know … the guy stuff … guy guys not gay guys … well, you know what I mean." He gestured for another shot. "This might be harder than I thought."

"I know what you mean. Don't worry; I won't discuss our sex life."

Booth winced. "Oh man … yeah, no. None of that. How about you start with his name and what he does for a living and we'll see where it goes."

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

Angela opened the door to Brennan's apartment and let Brennan enter in front of her. "Why don't you go get changed, Sweetie and I'll make us some tea."

"You don't have to stay, Ange," Brennan said.

"I'm not going anywhere," Angela stated in her practice maternal way. "They were not happy that you were leaving the hospital and I promised that I would stay with you."

"I don't have a concussion."

"With that thick head of yours? Of course not. Go. Change. Tea. Don't lie down." Angela gave her a look that said she was immovable. "Bren, please. Just do what you are supposed to do."

Brennan nodded. She really wanted to be alone. Angela was going to have a hundred questions and Brennan didn't have any answers.

Brennan stood for a long time in the bathroom just looking at herself in the mirror. Nothing looked different but she was sure something had changed. She dressed slowly and only came out when she heard the tea kettle whistle.

"Was just about to send a search party for you, Sweetie," Angela said cheerfully. "Come, sit down."

Brennan did as she was instructed and tried to taste the tea. It was too hot and bitter. "Can I have something stronger?" she asked.

"No ... no alcohol. Water. Juice. Tea. Drugs."

"Drugs," Brennan chose. She changed her mind. "Never mind. Just the tea."

"So, tell me, Sweetie, are you OK?"

"Yes."

"Sweetie?"

Brennan looked away. "Scott Angle put us in the trunk," she said softly.

Angela's mind – fast as a whip – knew exactly where Brennan was going with that. "That must have been very hard."

"Carson did all he could to help me." She was trying to change the subject.

"He seems like a good guy," Angela offered though she didn't want to talk about Carson.

"Booth is out with him now."

"Sweetie, what's going on?"

"Everything can be gone in a moment," Brennan blurted out.

"Yes it can."

"When you least expect it."

"That is also true."

Brennan turned to Angela and struggled with herself about asking the next question, her need to know won out. "How can you bring a baby into the world when you have no control over what will happen from one moment to the next? Your child could be blind, Angela. How difficult that would be to live in the world with that kind of handicap."

Angela was well aware of the possibility of the blindness and how hard it would be for her child. "I'm scared about that too, Bren. And that will play a role in whether or not we have a second child – or how we have a second child. Would we have taken this chance if we had known before?" She thought for a long moment. "I don't know. I don't know what we would have done. But I know I am going to love this baby - this little life we are creating whether he can see me or not. And I am going to do everything in my power to give this little guy all that he needs to be happy. Jack is already practicing the piano and I have gotten into sculpture - just in case. There are a lot of ways to experience the world, Bren. You know that."

"And that doesn't ..."

"Yeah, it scares me, but it doesn't control me. That's life, sweetie." Angela shifted her position on the couch which wasn't easy. "Life isn't random chaos. You think you way through and you do the things you can to keep yourself and the people you love safe and happy and you deal with the rest as it happens - day by day."

"And you can plan a future like that? Not knowing what will happen? Knowing that it can all be taken away from you in a second?"

"That's how it's done. Yes, things happen, but sometimes those things are great – sometimes not so great, I'll grant you. But sometimes things are really, really great. Sometimes great things come out of really bad stuff."

"Like me and Booth."

"You and Booth would have found your way to each other sooner or later, Vincent's death may have forced the door open, but you were both standing their just waiting for the other to knock. Don't kid yourself, sweetie. You and Booth are real and you two are solid. You two will weather any storm - metaphorically speaking."

"How can you say that? Four months ago he was so much in love with Hannah that he asked her to marry him. That is big for Booth, he wouldn't have done that lightly. And when she rejected him he told me he wanted nothing from me other than our working partnership."

"Look, I don't know what Booth was thinking then. I'm not sure Booth does either. But I don't believe he ever stopped loving you. Maybe he stopped believing that it could happen for the two of you – you had a hand it that, you know. But he never stopped loving you."

"Booth says that you can love a lot of people in the world, but there is only one you love best."

"And you are wondering if you are his best?"

"I don't know. I don't know if I want to be. That is a lot of pressure."

"I'm going to give you some advice … even if you aren't asking for it. Stop worrying about the future. Stop worrying about stuff you can't control. You love Booth. He loves you. Just be together. Enjoy each other. If something comes tomorrow that is great – embrace it. If something comes tomorrow that is not great – you and Booth will work it through."

"What if we can't?"

"Of course you can. You and Booth have a history of getting through stuff. Just look at you know – you survived Desert Barbie."

"I could have died today, Angela."

"I know." She took Brennan's hand. "Believe me, I know."

"Booth could lose his job over this."

"You can't think like that, sweetie." She recanted a bit. "You can't let it control you and the decisions you make."

"I don't want to die. Booth would -" she stopped herself.

"That's good. There was a time when you never considered that it could happen to you or what impact it would have on the people you left behind."

"I've changed."

"You have." She smiled brightly. "That's a good thing."

Brennan just nodded not sure if it was good or not.

"What else is going on?"

Brennan thought for a long moment wondering if she knew what was really bothering her. It was still looming there just out of sight. Just out of the periphery. Then the words of the tech rang loudly in her ears. _**Are you pregnant?**_ There was a very real possibility that she was. She hated thinking that way. She was an adult woman who took charge of her life, not some dumb teenager who knew nothing about the world. How could she have let herself get caught like that – if indeed there was anything to catch? "Nothing, it's just that … I was really scared today."

"Of course you were."

"No, Angela. You don't understand. I have been in dangerous situations before. I've been to Guatemala. I have faced down guerillas. I have killed before and I have been scared before, but I have never been this scared."

"You kept your head. You got away from the bad guy, enough for Booth to take him out."

"Booth doesn't like to kill people."

Angela laughed. "Good to know."

Brennan wanted to end the conversation, she wasn't making herself understood. She didn't understand herself. "How are you?" she asked in almost whiplash form.

"I'm good ... you know ... big as a house and just dying to get this kid out of me, but I'm OK."

"Only two weeks left."

"If I'm on time ... could be any day now. Jack is so excited he could burst. He's probably pacing around out front right now. He's never more than ten feet from me."

Brennan looked toward the door. "Dr. Hodgins is here? What is he doing outside?"

"Being a good guy." She smiled brightly thinking about what a really great guy Jack Hodgins was.

"Oh Angela, you shouldn't be here with me. You should be with your husband."

"I'm not leaving you alone, besides," she grinned. "Was going to send Jack for some Thai. You hungry?"

A slow smile spread across Brennan's face. "I could eat. Only if Dr. Hodgins joins us and we don't talk about me or what happened today. I want to hear about you and your baby."

"Your niece of nephew ... of the heart."

"Yes ... I am looking forward to being a pseudo-aunt."

"First things first ... FOOD! I'm starving."

"You know that it will be harder to lose the weight you have gained during your pregnancy."

"Yeah, I know ... thanks, Bren. Always the voice of reason."

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

The room was dark. Brennan was not sleeping but she was lying very still and had her eyes closed. She didn't hear the door open, but she felt his weight on the bed as he climbed in behind her on top of the covers and wrapped her up in his arms paying special care to her shoulder. He smelled like whiskey, beer and fried food. He nuzzled her neck with his day old beard.

"You weren't supposed to leave the hospital," he whispered.

"You didn't drive home, did you?" she asked.

"I'm not drunk," he defended. "But I didn't drive." He kissed behind her earlobe. "You weren't supposed to leave the hospital."

"I didn't need to stay there."

"That's not what the doctor said."

"I know my body, Booth. I'm fine."

"I know your body too, and I want to keep it healthy."

"I'm here now." She didn't want to have to justify her reasons for leaving the hospital.

"Yes, you are."

"Did you send Angela and Dr. Hodgins home?"

"Yes, and it's a very good thing she called me. Why didn't you?"

"Thought you and Henry needed some time."

"So he could tell me he's gay?"

"Do you mind?"

"Not really … a little weird considering … not sure I know what to talk to him about anymore, but I'll figure it out."

She rolled over in his arms and faced him. "He seems like a good man."

"He's a good agent … in spite of the fact that he nearly got you killed."

"Booth -."

"It's over," he cut her off. "No more out in the field without me, OK?"

"Booth -."

"OK?"

"OK."

He pulled her close. "Could have lost you today." His eyes watered with unshed tears.

"I'm fine." She snuggled into his embrace grateful to be in his arms and safe. She couldn't tell him how scared she really was. It would make him feel helpless and responsible; she didn't want to add to his burden. "I don't want to have sex tonight."

He almost laughed. "Oh no?" Sex was the furthest thing from his mind - not exactly the furthest but he was content just to hold her.

"So if you don't want to stay here."

"Do you want me to go?"

"No."

"Bones, this isn't just about sex. You understand that right? That we are working toward something."

"What? What are we working toward?"

"A future ... you know ... love and happiness in life ... fate. And before you say that you don't believe in fate, look where you are. Did you think nine years ago that you would wind up right here, right now with me?"

"No, but that does not prove that fate exists."

"You saying I made a lucky guess?"

"Of course not."

"We took a twisted course to get here ... but don't for one minute think that it was about sex - just sex. You knew that ... you knew that and that's why you turned me down that night after you suggested that we ... you know."

"I told you that was the tequila."

"No, it wasn't. You kissed me and you felt it too ... you knew that we were not just some roll in the hay."

"I don't understand."

"Admit it."

"Admit what?"

"When you kissed me - way back when - when you kissed me you knew that we had a future."

"I don't know what you mean."

"Why did you change your mind?"

"I told you ..."

"It wasn't the tequila. What was it?"

She thought for a moment and decided that true confession was the best way to go. "It was because you told me about your gambling."

"You didn't want to get hooked up with a degenerate gambler?"

"No, I didn't care about that. It was the reason you told me."

Booth thought for a moment. "I don't remember."

"You said that you thought that we were leading somewhere."

"Was I wrong?"

"I wasn't looking for a relationship, Booth. I had been with men who wanted a relationship and a future and all it led to was trouble. Fights and arguments and them saying really unkind things about the type of person I am."

"You were - the type of person you were. You're different now."

"The only thing I know for sure that is different now is that I want to try ... but that still doesn't prove your fate theory."

"PoTAto, Potato."

"I don't know what that means."

"Doesn't matter."

"You think you were right? You think that you knew that we were destined to be together."

"Yes. I knew. All seeing Seeley Booth."

"That doesn't explain your actions of the past year and a half. If you believed in fate then why -."

"Don't!" He stopped her. "Don't say it. Don't go there. If I grant you your fate argument can we move on from this? It wasn't fate ... it was just a wish. My wish and look at us." He kissed her. "I got my wish."

She was quite for a moment. "I did too."

He pulled her close. "Good."

"What date did you write down?" she asked after a moment.

"Date? What are you talking about?"

"That night of the blizzard ... what date did you write down?"

He smiled. "What date did you write down?"

"I asked you first."

"I don't remember."

"Yes, you do."

"Does it matter now?"

"No, but ... was it early or late?"

He thought for a long moment. "Early ... but only by a little bit." He kissed the top of her head. "I cheated a little. I didn't write down a date some much as a time."

"A time of day?"

"Not really ... an event."

"What was the event?"

He considered. "No, you'll get mad at me."

"What? No, I won't."

"You will."

"I promise I won't."

"You can't make the kind of promise."

"I can't ... but tell me anyway."

He really didn't want to say. "When you kissed me."

"What? That is not an event."

"It was to me," he grinned.

"But you kissed me first."

"Like I said, I cheated a little." He got serious. "I wouldn't have chosen all the events of the day we first slept together, but in hindsight I was ready for you the night of the blizzard. If you had kissed me that night, everything would have clicked into place."

"I wanted to."

"What? Kiss me?"

"Yes ... that night and several others."

"Oh yeah?"

"Yeah?"

"Tell me."

"What? You want to know all of the times?"

"How many are we talking about?"

Brennan thought for a moment. "A few ... quite a few."

"More than a handful?"

"How can it be a handful?"

"It just can." He leaned into her. "Do you want to kiss me right now?"

"Yes." She kissed him quickly.

"How about now?"

She smiled and kissed him again.

"And now?" he asked.

"This could go on all night."

"I'm hoping for longer than that … a lot longer … how about now?"


	26. Chapter 26

**A That's Why I'm Here**

By LizD

Written September 2011

**Chapter Twenty-six**

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

Booth paused in the waiting room. He wasn't sure what he was about to say but he knew that he couldn't wait for Sweets to come to him. He knocked on the doorframe and pushed the door open. Sweets was sitting at his counter focusing on his computer screen, but he wasn't typing. He was just thinking.

"Hey Sweets," Booth said as cheerfully as he could muster. "Got a minute?"

Sweets turned slowly toward Booth. His expression didn't betray his mood, but he wasn't his usually joyful self, nor was he bothered by the interruption. He closed his laptop. "Sure."

Booth entered but didn't sit down. Sweets did his usual - picked up a yellow pad and took his therapy seat and waited. Booth wanted to get this behind him, he had work to do. "So, I guess we need to talk about yesterday," Booth started.

Sweets hesitated. "I'm glad you recognize that, Agent Booth. Since you came to me, what would you like to say?"

"Well," Booth went to the window and looked out. He looked back at Sweets and came over and took his usual seat on the couch leaving room for Brennan as if she were actually there. "I'm sorry I ... I'm sorry I shoved you."

Sweets waited to see if Booth would say anything else. When it was clear he wasn't going to he asked his question. "Do you know why you did?"

Booth almost laughed. "Yeah, you were pissing me off."

"I see." He wrote something down on his pad.

"I don't have anger issues, Sweets."

Sweets looked down at his pad and back up at Booth. There was no way Booth could have seen what he wrote down. "You were clearly angry."

"I was frustrated. My partner was taken by a psychopath and you were trying to get me to hand the situation to someone else."

"Scott Angel was a sociopath. The difference is -"

"Whatever ... look ... let's get to it, Sweets. Are you going to push to split us up?"

Sweets let the pad drop to his lap and leaned back in his chair. He would normally force Booth to say all the words so there was no confusion, but he decided not to. "No."

"No?"

"No. You are an effective team. Your personal relationship enhances that. You were very in sync yesterday in spite of the fact that you weren't in the same room or speaking to each other. It is clear how well you know each other."

"I don't understand. You were trying to get me to step aside all day yesterday."

"I was quite impressed with how well you were able to maintain focus when dealing with Scott Angel in spite of the fact that you were experiencing high emotions."

"High emotions? Right," Booth mocked. He ran his hand through his hair. "I don't get it. Yesterday -"

"I know," Sweets interrupted. "I was wrong."

That was a first. "What? How? Why?"

"You and Dr. Brennan - your partnership has been strained this past couple of years - if you include the time you were separated. In spite of that strain, you were still effective at your jobs but your cohesion was not what it once was. What I witnessed yesterday - after I thought about it - was a very tight unit. You work well together and you are able to use that to best advantage. The strain ... the awkwardness, the tentativeness that I have witnessed is gone. I believe that you have a stronger partnership than you had."

"And what about the other thing?"

"You mean the fact that you two are in a romantic relationship?"

Booth sort of nodded a yes, still reluctant to admit it to Sweets even though he already had.

"Congratulations," he said solemnly.

"I don't understand, you have been threatening to split us up for two weeks now, sniffing around after anything you can find. What changed?"

"I was unsure how a change in your relationship would affect your working relationship. The safety of the agents and civilian consultants has to be my first priority."

"And?"

"Clearly the change in your relationship has re-solidified the partnership - the working partnership."

"Yeah." Booth had to agree with that, but he would also have to admit if pressed that the rage he felt the day before was more than he had ever felt before. It wasn't paralyzing, but it was intense.

"Might I make an observation ... actually it's not an observation as I have not witnessed you two together in the same room working a case recently, it is more of word of warning? A cautionary warning."

Booth rolled his eyes. "Go on."

"The old adage 'familiarity breeds contempt' is not an old adage for nothing. I assume this change in your relationship is new and you two are in a bit of a honeymoon period - so to speak."

"Yeah, yeah I know."

"Please do not take this lightly, Agent Booth. You are both professionals and you do tend to exclude the outside world, you have for a long while. You might find it harder to keep your personal feelings out of the professional realm as time goes on and ... and when the bloom is off the rose - as they say - it might be harder to stay professional."

"Did you get a Phrase-a-day calendar or something?"

"It is just a piece of advice."

"So when we are fighting over toilet seats and toothpaste tubes, we should try to leave that at home when we are being shot at?" He shook his head. "I'll make a note."

"Please don't take this lightly."

"I hear you, Sweets. I do."

"Good. And you know that my door is always open for either you or Dr. Brennan - not literally of course - in case you need to talk about something - together or separately."

"Yeah, we know ... great ... thanks, Sweets."

Booth made a hasty retreat before Sweets could ask any questions that Booth was not willing to answer.

Sweets remained in his therapy chair with his yellow pad in his lap. He didn't look happy. In fact he looked very worried. He wondered how much he was responsible for the ups and downs of Booth and Brennan's relationship over the years. If he had never brought them into partners counseling, they wouldn't have talked through the issues they had in the past - probably. They wouldn't have been forced to acknowledge feelings that they were harboring and denying. It would have all been kept below the surface. The surrogate relationship would have run its course; they would each have found other romantic interests and remained as partners - professional partners - and friends - if that. Maybe that was the most they could have been to each other. Maybe if Sweets never forced them to address the more than platonic feelings a romantic relationship would never have been seriously considered, they never would have split up and they never would have ultimately gotten together. Many partnerships have a very close bond between the members but that does not necessitate romance. They had a chance when they first met and for whatever complicated reasons they chose not to go that way even for one night; that was information that Sweets didn't have when he was writing his book and positing his theory of love. Instead they became an effective team that Sweets didn't understand - and Sweets needed to understand. Maybe Sweets did more harm than good. Maybe Sweets was wrong. Maybe they never had romantic feelings - maybe it was just sexual that Sweets confused for love. Maybe Sweets planted the seed and sent them down a path that was never going to happen without him. And because of him they thought it was more, and when it turns out not to be they will fall harder and end permanently and it will be Sweets' fault.

On the other hand, maybe Sweets had no impact on them. Maybe Sweets was just another hurdle in their race to the place they were at now. Maybe they would have confronted their feelings for each other without Sweets' meddling a lot sooner and been farther along their path. Maybe they would have done it years ago. That was highly unlikely in Sweets' mind.

His real worry was what was next. Honestly what were their chances at a long term relationship? How long would it last and what kind of fall out would there be when it ended? Brennan would be fine - or would she? It is reasonable to believe that she could compartmentalize anything, but who knows what would happen now that she has let her defenses down enough to let Booth in. Booth would suffer the most when their relationship fell apart. He was romantic and believed in forever. All he had wanted for himself was a partner to share his life and he had been rejected but the two women he asked. When he was ultimately rejected by Brennan, would he be doomed to walk this earth alone? Could he honestly put his heart out there again? Sweets didn't believe so. But when would that be? A month? Six months? Or six years? Would it be before it got messy? For now it was just the next step - they wouldn't be foolish, foolhardy or impulsive. They wouldn't run off and get married; both were responsible adults. No, talk of marriage and God forbid children was months away.

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

Brennan walked into the lab and nearly ran into Cam.

"Dr. Brennan, what are you doing here?"

Brennan adjusted her arm in the sling and kept walking. "Working. We still have a case to put together." She had been thinking about that all night. That Angel maybe be dead, but the murders still needed to be solved and it needed to be proven that Angel was the killer. There was still the senator's DNA in the car to explain.

"We can do that, Dr. Brennan." Cam followed her toward her office. "You should be home resting."

"I'm really fine, Dr. Saroyan." She entered her office and sat down behind the desk. Cam was following.

"How's Booth?" Cam asked before thinking it might be construed as a personal question now.

Brennan studied her for a moment. "Booth is fine."

"I'm not prying, Dr. Brennan," she assured her. "It was a pretty stressful day for all of us yesterday."

"I understand."

"We were all very worried about you."

Brennan didn't know what to say.

Cam was telling the truth about everyone feeling stressed the day before. She was putting it mildly. She felt responsible for sending Brennan out to Linda Monroe's apartment. She forced Brennan to go with Carson. She didn't know why she was being such a hard ass, but maybe it had something to do with Booth. Maybe Cam was jealous and needed Brennan to know that Cam was still the boss. Paul had tried to talk her down from that the night before when they knew Brennan and Carson were safe. Paul was amazing. He totally turned her head around. She was happy for Booth and Brennan. She was hopeful for them. She was as hopeful for them as she was for herself.

Cam smiled. "Can I share something with you?"

"If you have to."

Cam didn't know why but she felt telling Brennan about her engagement would let her know how happy she was and how happy she could be for Booth and Brennan. "Paul and I are engaged."

Brennan's smile was slow in coming but it was genuine. "Congratulations. I hope you will be very happy." She held her comments about age, societal pressures and her biological clock - all pressures that Brennan should be feeling but wasn't.

"Thank you. I never thought I would get married, but when you find the right someone it doesn't have to be perfect it just has to feel ... feel right." Cam's smile broadened.

"I understand." Brennan didn't really, but she wondered if Cam was trying to tell her something. Maybe Cam and Brennan were more alike than Brennan ever thought.

"I still need to tell Michelle."

"Will she be against it?"

"No, she is going off to college, but I want her to think of us as home."

Brennan wanted to say a number of things that popped into her head, but all it felt wrong to say. She just nodded.

Cam wanted to dish some more, but Brennan was not really the dishing type; maybe Angela or her sister. "I'll let you get to work, but please think about taking the afternoon off."

"I will. Thank you."

Cam left and Brennan tried to focus on what she needed to get done but was thoroughly distracted. Cam was getting married. Angela and Hodgins were having a baby. She and Booth were forming a new relationship. Vincent was dead. Too much was changing and it was going to continue to change. Her relationship would Angela change when she became a mother. It was anyone's guess how marriage would affect Cam, and as for her relationship with Booth, she couldn't see what it would look like. Everything was in a state of flux and there was no telling when it would settle or what it would be like if and when it did. Nothing would ever be as it was. There was still something just out of sight that she felt was going to come and flip everything on its head.

Brennan tried to work but her mind kept spinning.

_- Paul and I are engaged._

_- __That's why I'm here._

_- Angela's very anxious for the baby to be born._

_- When my dad asks you to marry him, will you say no too?_

_- __You're truly the best friend I have ever known._

_- He should have married her._

_- There is a 25% chance the baby will be born blind._

_- Are you pregnant?_

_-__ You were happy when you were with Hannah._

_-__ I am going to love this baby - this little life we are creating whether he can see me or not._

_- Am I the consolation prize?_

_- I remember everything you told me._

_- __A baby is a miracle, Bones and worth the risk._

_- __You know where this is going, right?_

_-__ When my dad asks you to marry him, will you say no too?_

_- Are you pregnant?_

_- __We are working toward something._

_- Paul and I are engaged._

_- __You and I will meet what comes at us head on and be there for each other until it is over._

_- I was scared ... terrified ... that something was going to happen._

_- Your flight response is very honed._

_- __I want to have a baby._

_- Are you pregnant?_

_- I want time. I want to be easy with you. To wake up slowly with you and go through a normal day._

_- __We have lost so much time._

_- Are you pregnant?_

_- __How can you bring a baby into the world when you have no control over what will happen from one moment to the next?_

_- I want time. _

_- __We have lost so much time._

_- Are you pregnant?_

_- Are you pregnant?_

_- Are you pregnant?_

_- Are you pregnant?_

_- __You know where this is going, right?_

"Tempe?"

Brennan stirred from her thoughts and blinked to get her eyes to focus.

"Tempe, honey? Are you OK?"

Brennan recognized the man in front of her. It was her father. She stood quickly and folded into his ready embrace like a little girl. "Dad."

"Oh honey, honey." He held on tightly and whispered paternal nothings to calm her fears. "Tempe."

She pulled away from him. Her eyes were rimmed with red, but she hadn't cried. "I'm sorry, Dad."

"Sorry, honey ... you have nothing to be sorry for.

She looked away embarrassed.

"Honey, I heard about yesterday. Are you OK? Where was Booth?"

"I'm fine, Dad. Booth did his job." She shot him a sideways look. "I'm fine. Really."

"Ok. Ok. I can see that you are in one piece." He frowned at her. "But you aren't fine. You want to talk to your old man about something?"

"No, Dad. Not really. I have work to do." She looked down at the clock. She apparently had been staring off into space for the last hour.

"How about I take you for an early lunch?"

That sounded like a really nice idea. She could use a little father daughter time. "Ok."

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

"Tell Max I say Hi," Booth said into his phone. "Can you go home after that, would really prefer knowing that you were home resting. ... I understand ... No, I get it. .. I am not trying to tell you want to do, just trying to take care of you. ... 'Cause I want to. 'Cause I can. 'Cause you'll let me. ... I'm going to write up this report, check in with Caroline and I may take the afternoon off myself. I need to check in with Parker. ... I talked to his this morning, but he likes to see me after big days like yesterday." A broad smile crossed Booth's face and his eyes shone. "I like to see you too. Anytime. ... OK. ... Ok ... Talk to you later ... see you later ... I love you. ... You do? Are you sure? Do you need more convincing? ... I am very persuasive. ... Ok ... I know. Bye. ... Right. ... Right. ... I told you, Sweets was fine. Nothing to worry about. Go have lunch with your dad. .. Right. Love you." Booth ended the call and looked at the picture on his phone. It was an old picture of Brennan. He made a mental note to take a new one - not that she had changed that much, but he saw her differently and wanted a new picture to fit with his new view.

Booth was in his office writing up the report from the Angel shooting making sure to dot every i and cross every t. He didn't say more than he needed to, but gave enough details to avoid having questions asked. Carson came in and shut the door behind him. He dropped into the chair across from Booth and put his feet up on Booth's desk. His jaw was swollen and looked worse than it did the day before. He looked like he was hit with a Mack truck.

"They are not amused," he said.

"Who?"

Carson pointed up. "The suits on the upper decks. Think that my first day in DC was a bit too exciting."

"What does that mean?"

"It means that I am benched for a while until they can get my psychological profile reevaluated and discuss the practicality of having such a rogue agent on staff."

"Are you serious?"

"Yes, seems that you aren't the only one who felt that Dr. Brennan shouldn't be taken into the field without you."

Booth wanted to argue that point on Carson's behalf, but Booth still felt that he could have protected Brennan and never allowed the situation to get as out of control as it did. "That sucks."

"Yeah, well ... something good came out of it. Rita and I talked. She is coming to DC for the summer."

"That is good, isn't it?"

"She was pretty ... absent when I was working that case in Seattle - her choice. We lost a lot of time." He shrugged. "Who knows, I may have all the time in the world to spend with her now."

"You know this is SOP. Who's your shrink?"

"Who else ... Sweets."

"You'll be fine. He talks a big game, but he usually does the right thing in the end."

"So he is not going to make trouble for you and Brennan?"

"No."

"Good."

"Look, Carson. I will put in a good word for you with the director. You'll be fine."

"I'd apprecaite that. It was a huge deal to move here with Jeffery's job and all. And his likes his job, absolutely loves the loft we have and has no intention of moving back to the Pacific Northwest."

"It rains there I hear."

"Yeah ... a lot."

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

"So tell me honey, you and Booth..." Max let the rest of the question hang out there.

"We are fine, Dad."

"Are you happy?" he asked. "That is all I have ever wanted for you ... I want you to be happy."

"I am not sure how to measure that."

"You don't measure it, honey. You feel it."

"I feel ... better when I talk to him ... I like to think about him." There was so much more she could say but she was still feeling a little uneasy about everything. Not Booth, she was sure of him, but the changes that were coming were making her feel very unsettled. "I enjoy my time with him. Is that happiness?"

"It's a start, honey."

Brennan's phone rang. The caller ID was the hospital. "Hang on Dad. I need to take this." Brennan got up and left the table.

Booth walked in and saw Max right away but didn't see Brennan on the other side of the counter on the phone. "Max," he said extending his hand to the old man but looking around until he spotted Brennan. He smiled and nodded toward her. She smiled and waved back.

"Booth," Max said sternly grabbing Booth's hand and squeezing it hard. "My daughter could have been killed yesterday."

"I am aware of that," Booth said. It was going to be harder to get passed Max than it was Sweets or the FBI.

"I understand you took the guy out who was holding her."

"I did."

"But there wouldn't have been anyone holding her if you didn't let it happen."

Booth wanted to defend himself, but he couldn't. He felt the same way Max did. "It won't happen again, sir."

"See that it doesn't." Max let go of Booth's hand. "I don't have to tell you what will happen to you if you let my daughter get hurt."

Booth almost smirked at the idea that Max would threaten him but he didn't need a threat from Max to feel responsible for Brennan's safety. "I understand."

"And I am sure I don't have to tell you what will happen if you hurt her yourself. She deserves better than you, but she has chosen you so ... so don't screw it up."

Booth would also defend himself by saying that Brennan had a little bit of input into their relationship but knew that was splitting hairs. "Not my intention, Max."

"The road to hell, Booth."

"Back at you, Max."

"Point taken."

"Just so we understand each other."

"We do."

Brennan watched as her father and Booth did their little male dance. She had seen it in various cultures; it was odd to know that they were posturing over her. She had been on hold waiting for the doctor to come back on the line.

"Dr. Brennan, are you still there?" the attending physician said.

"Yes."

"I would like you to make an appointment with your regular doctor."

"Why?"

"The blood work shows hCG." There was silence on the end of the line. "Dr. Brennan? ... Dr. Brennan, do you know what that means?"

"hCG is Human chorionic gonadotropin a hormone produced in pregnant women."

"Correct. Dr. Brennan ... you're pregnant."

Brennan ended the call and stared across at the table where her father and Booth sat.

What was coming, had arrived.


	27. Chapter 27

**A That's Why I'm Here**

By LizD

Written October 2011

**Chapter Twenty-seven**

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

"Dr. Brennan ... you're pregnant."

Brennan ended the call and stared across the diner at the table where her father and Booth sat. Her mind didn't go blank rather it sped up so fast even she couldn't follow it.

Booth saw that she was off the phone as he had been glancing in that direction repeatedly if only to end the conversation with Max. She looked … pale or stunned or something very un-Bones-esque.

"Hey Bones," he called over to her. She didn't respond so he crossed over to her. "Bones? You alright?"

"Yes, I'm … I'm … I'm fine." She stole a quick glance at him. She needed time to process the fact – THE FACT - before she discussed it with Booth.

"You sure? You look ... I don't know … shocked."

"Shocked? Why would I be shocked? I'm not shocked."

"Who were you talking to?"

Brennan didn't answer pretending that she didn't hear him. She crossed over to the table where her father sat. "I've got to get back to work, Dad."

Max noticed she looked different too. "Sure, sure, honey. You OK?"

"I'm fine. I wish people would stop asking me that. I'm fine. I'm not sick." She looked over at Booth. "I'm not sick," she protested.

"Not sick," Booth confirmed. "Injured reserve maybe."

"I don't know what that means." She had no interest in knowing what that meant. "I just need to get to work."

"Bones, I thought you were taking the afternoon off."

"No," she said gathering her purse and coat. "You said I was taking the afternoon off, but there is work to be done."

Booth and Max shared the look men share when the woman in their life was making no sense. "I'll walk you back to the lab," Booth offered.

"Sure," she said though she would have preferred to be alone. She leaned down and kissed her father on the cheek. "Bye Dad. Thanks for lunch."

"Ok honey. I'll talk to you later, huh?"

"Yes."

Brennan walked out not waiting for Booth. Booth shared one more look with Max and then trailed along after her.

**x|x x|x**

"Bones!" he called to her as he raced to catch up to her. "Hey, Bones! Where's the fire?"

"Why would there be a fire? How would I know about fire?"

"Well, something has lit you up. What's going on? Did you get bad news?"

"Bad news? You think this is bad news?"

"I have no idea what the news is. You tell me." She didn't say anything. "Who was on the phone?"

"It was the hospital," she blurted out.

"Did you forget to pay the bill in your haste to get out of there?" he joked.

This was not how she was going to break this kind of news to him. She was not thinking clearly and he was … was not serious. She didn't even know how she felt about the news yet. "Yes. That's it. It was the bill." It was all too easy to lie to him. She didn't like that. She didn't like it at all.

Booth didn't think she would accept his joke. He was hoping it would annoy her to the point of telling him the truth. He of course knew it was not about the hospital bill but refused to let his mind go to something more serious about her health. She said she was not sick. Brennan didn't lie - typically. "Well, you should take care of that … soon."

"I intend to."

"Nothing else?" Brennan kept walking picking up her pace. "Hey, stop." He grabbed her arm and stopped her from continuing her march to the lab. "What say we take the afternoon off?"

"I would really rather not. I would like to get this case off my desk and get some other things take care of."

"Ok." He released her arm. "It was just an idea."

She pulled her arm out of the sling; she winced a little at the pain. "I don't need this anymore."

"Is that what the doctor said?"

Again she didn't answer but again started her march to the lab. Lying by omission was still lying, she was not confused about that, and she still didn't like it and really didn't like how easy it was for her.

"How about we grab an early dinner. Somewhere nice. Not the Founding Fathers. Maybe that new Sushi place."

"Don't you have a sporting event tonight?"

"I had a hockey game, but I told them I couldn't make it."

"Why?" She looked at him quickly. "You did not cancel because of me, did you?"

"I thought I should be available and …"

"And?"

"I thought you might like to go the next time I played. Not tonight of course … but next time."

"I have seen you play hockey before."

"Yeah … but now you're my ... you know … it's different."

"Yes. I understand. You wish me to sit with the other wives and girlfriends – significant others – so you may demonstrate your male -."

"Come on, Bones. Is everything just an anthropological study to you? Can't you just come and cheer me on?"

"Yes." She paused. "But I would rather not tonight."

"I'm not playing tonight."

"I think you should go." She had reached the outer grounds of the lab. She stopped and turned toward him. "Have fun with your hockey friends. Do some male bonding."

She was trying to get rid of him. He could take a hint. Maybe they were spending too much time together. They weren't joined at the hip after all.

"Why would we be joined at the hip?" she asked.

"Did I say that out loud?" He didn't think he did. He flashed a smile. "We wouldn't." He paused for a long moment. "Right. OK. Hockey it is. You're going to work?"

"I will work and get to bed early tonight."

"Do you want me to come by? It will be kind of late."

"No. No. Stay out with your friends discussing your victories. I will see you tomorrow."

It would be the first night they had spent apart since … well since they first spent the night together except when Booth was out of town. "Ok." He shouldn't be upset. In fact he should be happy. Other women weren't as independent as Brennan. Other women might stick to him like Velcro and he would never get a moment to himself. Typically Booth dated the independent type, but Brennan was by far the one who needed him least. He hoped he didn't say that out loud.

"Ok," she said.

They hesitated unsure of how to part.

"OK, well … I'll see you later, huh?"

"Yes."

Booth nodded and turned away.

"Booth?" she called to him. He turned back just in time to receive her into his arms and accept a kiss from her. It was a brief kiss but she remained in his arms. "This is OK, isn't it?"

"You can kiss me whenever you want," he said looking around preferring not to be seen.

"I mean tonight. It's acceptable if I don't go to your sporting event."

"Yeah, sure … I mean I would love to have you there, if you wanted to come, but you don't have to."

"I will come next time."

"Sure. Next time," he said with a weak smile.

She stepped back away from him. "I hope you do well."

"Thank you. I'll call you a little later – before the game."

"Ok."

"Ok."

He hesitated again searching her face for any sign that whatever was wrong he should not let fester – Booth knew about women and festering issues. He turned away and this time got about three steps away.

Brennan watched him retreat. As much as she needed time to process the information she received she didn't want to hurt him in the process. He looked hurt. "Booth!" she called again. He turned to meet her eye. "I love you," she offered.

Booth's face broke into a wide grin. "I know."

"Aren't you supposed to say it back?"

"I love you too."

"Booth?"

"Bones," he drawled.

"Come by after the game and your drinking ritual."

"Yeah?"

"Yes."

"Ok."

"Ok."

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

Brennan worked the rest of the afternoon and was actually able to concentrate. She has compartmentalized what she needed to think about and was able to focus on the task at hand. Of course there were thoughts that would surface that kept the news fresh in her mind.

Around six, Angela came into her office.

"Wow … need to take a load off here." She slumped down onto the couch. "It's gonna take a crane to get me off this thing."

"How are you feeling?" Brennan asked coming around her desk and sitting near her.

"I feel like whale."

"I have always imagined that whale feels free in the water even more so than a bird in the air. Have you considered birthing your child in water?"

"I considered it. Jack nixed it."

"Do you find it difficult to make decisions together?"

"No. Well, yes, but sometimes he's right and sometimes he has thought of something that I haven't. Actually it is really nice to have a partner in life." She smiled, rubbed her stomach and looked off into space. "It is really nice to share this experience with another person."

"You share it with me."

Angela reached out and took Brennan's hand. "Not the same, Sweetie. But you'll see when you and Booth go through this – though I expect that won't be for some time yet."

"Is there a reason we should wait?"

Angela tried to sit up. Brennan helped and put some pillows behind her back. "Well, yeah." Angela considered her words. "Actually, no. You and Booth have been together for years."

"We only started having sex a few weeks ago. Isn't that the defining factor?"

"Normally I would say yes, but not for you and Booth. You two have been a couple since you met. In fact it is understandable what happened between you two the last couple of years – it was your seven year itch."

"That is not a real, Angela."

"Oh, no? I think it is. Doesn't matter now. How are you two doing?"

Brennan nodded. "Good." 

"Good?" Brennan didn't use words that simplistic.

"Yes. "

"Have you gone on a date yet?"

"A date?"

"Yeah, where you each dress up and he picks you up with flowers in his hand and takes you to a great restaurant were you eat the best food you have ever eaten in your life and you take a walk along the water afterward or go dancing or something just to prolong the night, then you go home and make love until dawn." Angela sighed thinking of the myriad of dates that she and Hodgins had while they were in Paris. There was one specific date that she was convinced was the one where their baby was conceived – they walked along the Seine until dawn after dining and dancing. They were exhausted when they got home but the love making was tender and fantastic. "You two need to go on a date."

"Booth is playing hockey tonight."

"So tonight is out. Just as well, you need to be in better shape. Need to heal and have full use of your arm. Trust me. It will be worth it. Make him take you on a date."

"He has suggested it, but the timing has been off."

"Your timing will be off. Find time and do it. You won't regret it. Put a hold on the baby and go on a date ... go on a bunch of them. Be in love for a while - just the two of you. Be happy. OW!" She sat up cringed a little and placed her hands on her abdomen. "Ow. Ow. Ow."

"Are you having contractions?"

"No. The kid's moving around in there like he is building another room. Don't get too comfortable there kiddo. You are being evicted soon." She reached for Brennan's hand and moved it to her swollen belly. "Feel that?"

Brennan's face lit up as she felt the little life growing inside Angela moving around.

"Not sure if that is a foot or an elbow."

"What does it feel like, Angela?"

"What to be pregnant? To have a parasite growing inside of you, sitting on your bladder, and squishing all your other organs. Carrying so much weight in your belly that your ankle swell, your back aches constantly and you can't get comfortable for more than three minutes which is fine because you are running to the bathroom ever three minutes." She rubbed her belly and smiled. "It is the most amazing experience I have ever known. And look at these breasts. I have cleavage." She laughed.

"Did you know you were pregnant?"

"You mean before the test?" She shrugged. "Hodgins and I let nature take its course as soon as we landed in Paris. After the second month, I started testing myself. You can't always tell. Anyway, the month that that it came back positive I wasn't surprised."

"Was Dr. Hodgins with you?"

"No, that's a funny story. He found the pregnancy test the first time I did it. He was there waiting with me to see if the stick would turn. He was more nervous than I was. We were both disappointed that first month. The second month we were pretty surprised that I wasn't. By the third month, Jack said he couldn't take the stress anymore. So I did it alone."

"Did you tell him right away?"

Angela laughed again. "I almost did but I decided to wait for the perfect moment."

"When was the perfect moment?"

"As we were boarding the plane to come home."

"Really? How long did you keep it a secret?"

"It was only a couple days but you should have seen him. He was flying so high we didn't need the plane to get us home."

"Is he still that happy?"

"Jack is more anxious for this baby than I am." She nodded. "Yeah, he's happy."

"So you are only days away still if your date is accurate."

"Yeah, a five - give or take. I am hoping for any day now."

"You know I will be there for you, Angela … at the hospital … when the baby is born. I will be there, though Dr. Hodgins will probably be there too so you won't be alone."

"Probably." She loved Brennan. "I love you, sweetie. And this little baby is going to love his Auntie Brennan too."

"You will tell him – or her – that I am not actually biologically his – or her – aunt."

"He'll know Sweetie and he won't care."

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

Brennan got home from work late - around eight. She had talked to Booth before he left for the game, but she was in a difficult mood. She would explain later. She took a long hot shower, made herself a very nitrous dinner and sat down to read. She was trying to pamper herself. All around her apartment were reminders that Booth was becoming a fixture: a tie left on the hook in the bathroom, swim trunks that didn't quite make it into the laundry basket, toiletries in the bathroom. She was comforted by these little items. She found her mind spinning about being pregnant and what would happen next. But each question or concern she had involved Booth. There was no way she was going to be able to think clearly about this pregnancy until she spoke with him about it. Logically there was no reason not to tell him and there was no way to proceed until she knew how he felt about it. The timing wasn't perfect, but it was too late to worry about that now. She would tell him when he came over. Maybe she would wait until the morning - everything with Booth was always better in the morning. It was rapidly becoming her favorite part of the day. She went to bed happy with her decision - tentative about the outcome, but happy in the knowledge that she and Booth would meet this development together in some way.

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

Booth was very distracted at his game that night; they still won even with Booth playing at 50%. He kept looking into the stands hoping that Brennan might have changed her mind. It was really OK that she didn't come, but he was a little disappointed. He went out with his team after the game and had only a couple of drinks. He drove directly to Brennan's house even though he did not have a change of clothes for the next day. He'd get up early to go home and shower.

He crept into the apartment and into her bedroom. She was sound asleep. The light from outside shone across her face. She glowed. He had known her for years but there were times when her beauty still struck him to his core. He wanted nothing more than to slip into bed with her and wake her up slowing and make love, but she was so peaceful. She has been curt with him on the phone earlier – more so than usual – and said she was tired. He probably shouldn't wake her up. She was still recovering from the day before. He should just let her sleep.

He left her a note that said that he didn't have the heart to wake her because she looked so peaceful but that he would see her in the morning. He signed it: love, Booth. He smiled as he wrote it. It was the first time he actually had written it down. Felt good.

Booth went home and actually got a good night's sleep. He was happy. God was in his heaven and all was right with the world - why wouldn't he sleep well?

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

Brennan woke at dawn before the alarm. She was reenergized and ready for what the day might bring. She rolled over and found Booth's note, rather than the man himself. The day took a decidedly downward slant.

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

**A/N: **Speeding up Angela's due day to hurry up and end this ditty before November 3rd.Officially now looking forward to the first six of season 7. FYI!


	28. Chapter 28

**A That's Why I'm Here**

By LizD

Written October 2011

**Chapter Twenty-eight**

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

Brennan woke at dawn before the alarm. She was reenergized and ready for what the day might bring. She rolled over and found Booth's note, rather than the man himself. The day took a decidedly downward slant but that was short lived. She had just finished brushing her teeth when she heard the front door open. Normally that would be cause to grab the weapon she had stashed in the bathroom behind the toilet. There was another one in the nightstand and one in the behind the bookshelf in the living room too. Instead she armed herself with the hairbrush and ducked into the guest room. She waited for the figure to pass by the door and enter her bedroom. She slipped out behind and shoved the brush into his back.

"Put your hands up!"

Booth complied and raised his hands. One held a white waxy bag from the bakery around the corner and the other a cup of coffee. "Don't shoot."

"Sneaking into a woman's bedroom at the crack of dawn is a very good way to get yourself shot."

"Maybe we can negotiate a surrender." He shook the bag and the coffee for emphasis. "I come bearing gifts."

"Is that all you have to negotiate with?"

"Oh, there is more ... much more." He turned his head toward her but not completely around. "Can I put my hands down?"

"Slowly." She pressed the end of the brush into his back. "No fast moves."

"Slowly. Very slowly." He put the coffee and the bag on the dresser and slowly turned toward her. With his lightening fast FBI moves, he grabbed the brush in one hand and snuck the other around her back, pulled her close and kissed her. "Hmmmm spearmint ... my favorite."

"I thought I said no fast moves."

"We are going to have to work on your defense and arrest tactics."

"I am an excellent shot."

"Ok, Rainman, but your suspect take-down leaves a lot to be desired." He pulled her closer. "I'd be happy to show you my moves."

"I'm sure you would."

"It is rigorous training and will require a lot of after hours undercover work."

"Do you feel my skills are that remedial?"

"With my partner's life and my lover's body in the balance there is no length I won't go to protect her."

"Is that what I am? Your lover?"

"Among other things ... my partner, my best friend, the one I will be with at the end ... no pressure," he quickly back tracked.

"Why didn't you stay last night?"

"Did you get my note?"

"I did."

"It was true. You looked too peaceful to disturb. I thought you needed a good night's sleep more than I needed to be with you."

"So you are saying going home was a selfless act."

"I wouldn't have put it that way, but you can - sure."

"I didn't enjoy waking up alone."

"Me either ... what say we go back to bed and wake up again in an hour or two or three."

"It's a work day, Booth."

"So? We don't have a case ... and before you say anything about Scott Angel ... it's done. Put to bed as it were."

"As it were what?"

He released her and stepped back. "Come with me to the kitchen." He grabbed the coffee and bag. "There is one thing I never want to do in the bedroom - discuss murders or murderers."

She followed behind him to the kitchen. "Since that is what we do with the majority of the hours in the day, I don't think that it is likely that we will never talk about our work in bed ... or the bedroom."

"I don't want it to be pillow talk." He sat down at the counter and tore open the bag. "Scones from that shop you like." He pushed the coffee to her side.

She grabbed some napkins, sat down and pushed the coffee back. "You can have this."

"I've had mine." He slid it back.

"I'm giving up caffeine." She slid it back to him.

"Since when?"

"Since right now."

"Why?" he asked with a mouthful of scone. "It's going to make your cranky. I don't want a cranky partner – or lover for that matter."

It was on the tip of her tongue, but they were about to discuss a murder investigation - a multiple murder investigation and she didn't feel that it was the right time to mention her little tidbit of news. On the other hand, maybe it was the right time. "Booth, there is something -." She was cut off. His cell rang.

Annoyed at the interruption, he slid to accept the call. "Booth," he barked. "Fine. We'll be right there." He ended the call. "We have a case."

"What about Senator Monroe?"

"I'll fill you in in the car – essentially he is a heartless jerk, but not culpable. Come on, get your shoes." He grabbed the coffee and drained half the cup.

Moments later they were walking out the door. He paused in the doorway and took her hand. "I missed you last night."

"I missed you this morning," she countered.

"Looks like we are the only ones who've changed ... the rest of the world is still out there killing each other."

"I don't know what that means."

"It means have dinner with me."

"We haven't had breakfast yet."

"No, I mean ... will you have dinner with me?"

"I don't understand."

"I'm asking you out on a date, Bones."

"A date?" She remembered Angela's counsel. "Yes, I would like that very much."

"Great ... Friday night."

"Ok."

"I'll pick you up here. Eight o'clock sharp. Dress up."

"But we don't know -," she started to protest.

"We'll figure it out, OK? Even the best crime solvers in the world need to have a social life, right?"

"We haven't in the past."

"Well that's going to change."

Brennan considered telling him that that was not all that was going to change, but decided that a date might be the perfect time to present her … her condition. "I have never put my social life before my work."

"Is that going to be a problem?"

Her eyes were locked with his. The way he was looking at her convinced her that everything would be OK. "Not at all."

"Good." He smiled. "Now kiss me and let's go." They kissed but it was not just a quick peck sending the spouse off in the morning.

"If you keep kissing me like that we will never get to work," she claimed.

"So my plan is working," he laughed. She kissed him again.

When they broke apart they had gathered quite an audience. Mrs. Adams was front and center smiling at them. "If I had a woman kiss me like that, I'd marry her – and I don't swing that way."

Booth smiled back at her thinking _first things first – _he had a date_!_

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

The case was tragic but not hard to solve; it only took a little over two days to wrap it all up. The remains were found in a secluded location of Rock Creek Park. The first set of remains was female, 35-40. The other two sets were children under the age of ten. The identification was quick, albeit depressing. The three had been reported missing in March from their home in Virginia. The woman's name was Rose Tyler Smith. The children were her daughters: Martha (nine) and Donna (six). The cause of death for Rose was blunt force trauma to the occipital from a tire iron. The murder weapon was buried with her. What disturbed Brennan was that there were a number of other bone markers that proved that she had been beaten repeatedly over several years. The young girls were asphyxiated and also showed signs of abuse.

At the time they went missing, all evidence pointed to the husband, Dr. John Smith, but without the bodies no arrest was made. Thursday afternoon there was enough evidence to make positive IDs, so Booth and Brennan left to talk to the husband.

"You're awful quiet there, Bones," Booth said after a little while.

"There are times when I don't like this job."

"Yeah, I know."

"We are pretending to go give notice to a man that his family has been found dead. He tortured them for years and brutally murdered them, and we are going to pretend to be sympathetic so we can trick a confession out of him."

"Sucks, I know," Booth admitted. "Innocent until proven guilty, Bones. Thems the rules."

"Do you believe that this man is innocent?"

"No. I think he is a scumbag that I am going to enjoy slapping the cuffs on and hauling off to jail - but first things first. We have to prove his guilt."

Brennan got quiet again and looked out the window.

"Bones?"

"What gives a man the right to beat his wife, his children?"

"There is no right ... he doesn't get to do it and we are the ones that are going to hold him accountable."

"That doesn't help Rose Tyler Smith or her daughters."

"I know, but this is our part of the justice system, Bones. You know that."

"I do. I just don't understand how a man could do that."

"I can't help you there." Booth was becoming uncomfortable; the topic was a little close to home.

"Have you ever asked yourself -?"

"What?" he cut her off. "If I could hit my family?" He glanced at her aghast. "Every day."

That was not her question at all, but it brought up another one. "Because of your father?"

"Yes. Typically this kind of behavior is passed down in families."

"It's not genetic, Booth."

"Maybe not in the DNA, but it happens ... a lot. That can't be coincidence."

"You are not your father, Booth."

He almost laughed. "You've never met him."

"Have you?" she countered.

"Excuse me?"

"Don't you think that your impression of him from when you were a child and he was hitting you might not be an accurate view of the man himself?"

"Nice, Bones. Thanks. I'm sure he's a prince and I just remembered it wrong."

"That's not what I am saying. I am merely suggesting that you and your father are very different people." She turned toward him. "It's not rational to think -."

"There's nothing rational about a man who beats his family," Booth barked. "OK?"

"Ok." She shut down. She scratched and old wound and made it bleed.

"Look, I'm sorry, Bones. This is a hot spot for me."

"I know," she said weakly. "I'm sorry if I said anything -."

"No, come on. It's fine."

Brennan got quiet again.

"Have you ever thought -." He let his question drop but stole a few glances at her.

"Are you asking if I am concerned that you would beat me?"

Booth looked panicked to hear her state his question so blatantly but he needed to know her answer.

"No."

"No?" he asked. "That's it? Just No."

"What else do I need to say?"

"How can you be sure?"

"Are you trying to get me to change my mind?"

"No. Not at all. But I want to know how you can be sure, when I'm not."

"I've known you for years, Booth." That wasn't enough. He needed more. "I have seen every kind of emotion you have - a few more in recent weeks. Some are pretty intense - some are very intense. You do have some anger in you, but it is never directed outward – at least not physically." Still not enough. "You are very physical and your job demands that - at times - you will need to use your physical prowess to take down a criminal, but you never use excessive force."

"You weren't in the interrogation room with Mike and Denise Shenfield," he reminded her. "He was in my custody in a locked room. There was no reason to _take him down_."

Brennan thought for a moment. "No, I wasn't there. But Shenfield hit his wife right in front of you. You had an obligation to protect her."

"That wasn't protection, Bones." He stated. "That was retaliation – and it was about more than Shenfield or what he did to his wife or that little girl."

She paused again not wanting to argue with him. "I don't believe you were out of control as you reported to me that you were."

"How can you say that?"

"Because you hit him once in defense of another person."

"I know what I was feeling, Bones," he corrected. "I was out of control."

"I will accept that because you tell me it is true." She looked at him. "I do not believe that you would ever hit a woman, particularly a significant other, nor do I believe you would ever hit a child. Your experience with your father haunts you and makes you fearful. Your father was an alcoholic and you are not. I do not believe you will not repeat his behavior."

"You aren't giving me any evidence to support your theory, Bones. I thought you liked evidence."

"Have you ever hit a woman in anger?"

"No." He smiled a little. "Mad enough to hit a wall when Rebecca was giving me a hard time about seeing Parker."

"Have you ever hit a child - in anger?"

"No, of course not. In anger or in any other way. I have never given Parker a spanking."

"Have you ever beaten someone who was smaller in stature than you are for any reason?"

He thought for a moment. "No."

"I submit that you won't."

"That is anecdotal."

She smiled at his correct use of the term. "We cannot know what we will or won't do in the future as situations change; however, history is the best judge of future actions."

He seemed to accept that. "So you aren't ... concerned?"

"About you hitting me? No." She turned back toward the window. "I'd kick your ass."

Booth laughed. "You probably would."

**x|x x|x**

The confession was 'wrung' from the doctor in moments. Booth told him that the remains of his family had been found. He looked blasé about the information; it probably wasn't news to him. It had been on the news for the past two days that a body had been found in Rock Creek Park. They were able to keep the identity unknown and the fact that there were children was also not released to the press.

Brennan went right for the throat - metaphorically speaking. "You killed your family, Dr. Smith. Didn't you?"

Smith broke down and blathered on about something that made no sense. There was no defense. There was no reason. There was no argument to be made. He was guilty and his confession synched the case. By Friday early afternoon they had wrapped up the case and the paperwork had been filed.

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

Brennan was near one hundred percent physically by date time. The wound on her head could easily be covered with make-up and she had only minor pain in her shoulder. She was dressed and ready at 7:45PM. Angela had come to help her get ready.

"You look great, sweetie," Angela said putting final touches on Brennan's upswept hair.

Brennan looked at herself in the mirror. She hadn't ever been concerned with her appearance in the past. She knew that she was beautiful – classically beautiful. She took no pride in it – it was a fact that she had little to do with. She had been on dates before and did make an effort with her appearance at those times but it never really mattered what her date thought. She was doing it for herself.

"I think Booth would like the blue one better," she said referring to her dress which was a simple black cocktail dress that had a full skirt, a tight bodice and tiny cap sleeves on a low scoop neck.

"Booth will love this dress, trust me."

Brennan did a half turn. "You don't think it is too tight?"

"The only thing I am concerned about is that you won't make it to dinner."

Brennan didn't understand until she looked at Angela who had a big knowing grin on her face. "If all Booth wanted to do is have sex with me, we didn't need to get dressed up."

Angela laughed. "I've got to go … need to get out of your way. Jack has been circling the block for the past ten minutes."

"Why didn't he park and come in?"

"Jack doesn't do the dressing part well … and he didn't park because he can't sit still – at least not until the baby is born."

"Any day now," Brennan said.

"Any second. Can't come too soon for me."

"Are you still anxious about the health of the baby?"

"Sweetie, I think I will be anxious about this baby for the next fifty years."

"Really?"

"Really. Jack and I created a life – a little human being - someone who will carry on after we are gone. This is huge. This is the most important thing anyone can do in this world. We created life." She paused to appreciate the gravity of her accomplishment. "We are responsible to give this kid the best we can give him. Of course I am worried. What if the kid doesn't like me? What if I screw him up and he grows up to be … I don't know … a serial killer or worse, a banker? I don't know what to do – I have never been around kids. What if I break him? What if I can't do it? I have never lived in one place for more than a year. I have never been with a partner for longer than six months and now I am committing to someone for the rest of my life. This is so much bigger than getting married. This is truly a lifetime commitment. I'm scared, Bren. All the time. I'm terrified."

Brennan's hands went to her abdomen. "What keeps you going?"

"Jack. I look into his eyes and I see old age. I see that we survive. I see that we meet each challenge and beat it."

"By your own admission, the baby is the only lifetime commitment. Can you rely on Dr. Hodgins?"

"No matter what – Jack will always be my baby's father, so no matter what happens between me and Jack, we will always have this baby between us. It is oddly comforting – to have a partner in this. If I lost him – I don't want to think about that. I couldn't do this alone."

"There are a great number of divorced parents who are not amicable and many single women raise children alone."

"Thanks for bringing that up and God bless ever single parent out there – but I know Jack. I know that he would do anything for this baby – anything – and if that means figuring out how to deal with this kid's crazy mother then he will do it."

Brennan gave a weak smile.

"But I wasn't talking about Jack and I breaking up – I was talking about if I lost him. I mean if he died. I don't know what I would do if he had a job like Booth's. Every day Booth is in danger. I'm glad Jack is just a bug man in the lab. No guns." Angela stopped when she realized what she said. Vincent was killed in the lab. It could have been anyone of them. But that was a fluke.

Angela had just given Brennan something to think about – something to stress about.

"You'll understand one day too, sweetie." Angela tried to sooth her because she saw the look of concern on Brennan's face. "When you and Booth are talking about kids – in a year or so, you'll know … you and he will be connected in a more profound way than you ever have been. But you don't need to think about that now. You have plenty of time. Just enjoy this time with Booth. You two deserve to take it easy for a while. It took you a long time to get here; there is no reason to rush to the next step. Besides, you will have your little nephew or niece to fill up your baby needs."

Brennan didn't know how to respond. She couldn't tell Angela before she told Booth. It occurred to her that Booth wasn't ready for this next step. When she asked him point blank he said that he would be interested in the future. Well the future was now. There was so much to consider. There really wasn't anything she could do about it, but it wasn't a cut and dried either. She looked at herself for a long time in the mirror. She didn't see any difference. She didn't feel it either. It would come. Brennan knew all that was coming – intellectually, but after watching Angela go through it she was beginning to believe that there was no book in the world that could teach a person about being pregnant, birthing and raising a child. It was individual for everyone. Experience was the only way. She wasn't ready for this experience – but ready or not it was coming.

The doorbell rang. She wondered why he didn't use his key. She went to the door and behind it stood Booth: clean shaven, fresh pressed suit and shoes shined. He looked and smelled great. In his hands were a bunch of daffodils. He must have driven all over town to find daffodils in May.

"Wow," he said scanning her up and down. "You look great."

"Thank you. As do you." He kissed her lightly on the lips. She placed the flowers in water and arm and arm they went on their date. She would let nothing ruin or sway the direction of that night or the weekend that followed. It was too important to him. It was important to her too. They needed a little time. This news could wait a few days – the world was not going to come to an end if she kept this to herself for him, for them. There would be plenty of time to talk, and plan and worry over all that was to come.


	29. Chapter 29

**A That's Why I'm Here**

By LizD

Written October 2011

**Chapter Twenty-Nine**

**A/N: **Some of the dialog from this chapter is lifted from the episode "A Change In The Game". This is not to plagiarize and you will probably recognize it, but I wanted to embellish some of the scenes.

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

Brennan would let nothing ruin or sway the direction of that night - their first date night - or the weekend that followed. It was too important to him. It was important to her. They needed a little time. The news could wait a few days – the world was not going to come to an end if she kept her condition to herself. There would be plenty of time to talk and plan and discuss all that was to come. All that was a grand rationalization on Brennan's part - the reality was: she was scared to tell Booth. He had made it pretty clear that he wanted to work up into the big stuff. He was happy with the way things were going. They weren't hiding their relationship; they just weren't discussing it and enjoyed having time and privacy to themselves. Well it didn't get any bigger than a baby and they wouldn't be able to keep it to themselves for very long, privacy would be all but forgotten. They deserved the weekend.

**x|x x|x**

The reality struck Booth square between the eyes as he helped Brennan into the SUV: he was happy. Not just happy for the moment, but happy for the future. He had everything he had wanted with Brennan and it was more than he had expected. He saw – rather he felt their future. They were going to make it. It was hard to pin point the date when he fell in love with her. In the beginning he was attracted to her - very attracted - and then he wasn't. When they started working together he was awed by her intelligence, drive, compassion and aloofness. She wasn't playing a game, she wasn't hard to get - she generally didn't want him. Booth didn't want to toot his own horn, but that was rare for him. Women usually wanted to sleep with him at least - not Brennan. For so many years there was no level ground for them. More often than not he felt stupid around her - really, really stupid. That was his own doing. Brennan didn't make it any easier, but she didn't hold it against him either. They disagreed on nearly every topic there was to have an opinion about and some that shouldn't even be discussed in polite company. They only thing they had in common was the desire to catch the bad guy. Consequently there was no logical expectation that they could work as a couple for any length of time. But after years of being partners and friends, learning and growing independently and racking up adventures it was clear that there was no way they could not work as a couple - long term.

The most profound part of this feeling was that he had arrived - he didn't need any more out of life. That was not to say that he felt that he could die a happy man, but that his expectations had been met and surpassed. The feeling would pass, but it was the first time in his life that he had ever experienced it. Booth must have gotten that from his years with Brennan. She was that she was who she was and he could either accept it or not. In the beginning he loved that about her; she was so different from any other woman he had ever known but they weren't dating so the stakes were considerably lower. Still, he didn't have to change for her; she didn't ask him to. She accepted him - she accepted him when she thought he was wrong, she accepted him when she knew he was wrong, she accepted him when it hurt her. He hadn't been quite that generous. In the past he was always trying to show her the error of her ways to get her to change. When that didn't work he distanced himself because they didn't see eye to eye - she had a hand in that part too. Both were useless exercises and he was making up for it now; it was a lesson well learned. Yes, he still felt there were impressions of the world that she got wrong. Yes, he would share his view with her if only to give her another perspective, but it was not important if she agreed with him or not. He didn't need to change her. She was amazing just as she was and he was lucky to have her in his life so completely. This was huge for Booth. More importantly he felt that in fifty years he would be thinking the same thing.

"Booth?" Brennan asked

Booth didn't realize but he had been lost in his thoughts and was staring at her. "Hey," he said gently as if surprised she was there in person.

"Are you OK?"

"I'm great ... I'm really great."

"Do you still want to go to dinner?"

"Absolutely." He kissed her and closed the door. He ran around to his side and jumped in with a spring in his step. Being in love is the best drug. "Decided on Italian - great little bistro, reminds me of home, OK?"

"Sure," she said confused by his sudden jovial change. "That sounds fine."

**x|x x|x**

It was fine – the setting, the restaurant, the dinner were all fine. Better than fine, they were great. It was intimate, romantic and tasty. The conversation was easy and plentiful about everything and nothing - and not a word was said about work. They talked of places they had gone by themselves and would like to see again together. They talked of people they knew and would like to know better. They talked of the past and with an eye on the future. Booth didn't notice that she wasn't drinking her wine. He didn't think it was odd that she ordered tea after dinner with dessert instead of a brandy. He didn't think it was odd that her eyes shone a little brighter and she looked healthier than he had ever known her to be. Brennan stayed in the moment all night long. She had no fear, no trepidation, no apprehension. She was happy and allowed herself to be. Angela was right, dates were good.

After dinner they walked hand in hand by the reflecting pool in near silence. There were no words needed. Booth reflected on all that it had taken to get them there at that moment in time - like building blocks - each moment was needed to form a solid foundation. Brennan reflected on hers reasons that had prevented them from getting there. She let each one of them go off into the night freeing herself from her fears. It was cathartic - letting go. She was safe with Booth - now and in the future. They ended up on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial looking out over the city that was their home - the history, the reverence of the place was not lost on them. Their lives were so small compared to the giants that came before them – but they were just as important.

Brennan slid her hand down and linked her fingers through his. They were connected.

"Let's go home," Booth suggested "And break the laws of physics."

She leaned into him tucking her head under his chin and pressing herself against his chest. It wasn't a miracle that they were there together. It wasn't miraculous that they had more of a future than they did a past. The child she was carrying wasn't a miracle. All of it could be explained - reasonably, rationally and scientifically. But that was not how it felt. It felt like a miracle. "Let's go home and break the laws of physics," she repeated back to him.

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

The rest of the weekend was equally un-miraculously miraculous. They slept late on Saturday morning motivating in time to get to Parker's soccer game. Rebecca let them take Parker that afternoon and evening. They swam in the pool, played Clue - Brennan won - three times, made pizza and watched DVDs. In the morning Booth took Parker home via church services, Brennan went food shopping to make the Sunday dinner that Booth had told her about from his youth. In the afternoon they went to the opening of an exhibit at the Jeffersonian. It was something that Booth would never have thought of going to, but with Brennan as his tour guide it was fascinating - or maybe he was just in love and so it seemed fascinating. Dinner was great. They cooked and cleaned together. They settled down on the couch after dinner and discussed Brennan's next book. He again asked if he could consult and she welcomed his input. They talked over plot, characters and key turning points in the story. They laughed about how Andy would help Kathy solve this crime and playfully fought over who was the better detective. Nothing much was resolved and next to nothing was written down. The brainstorming session ended early when Booth suggested a scene in which Andy was naked and Kathy discovered him in a compromising position. Of course the scene was not pivotal to solving the case, but that didn't stop them from acting it out all in the name of research.

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

Brennan woke early Monday morning and remained in bed with Booth spooned up behind her sound asleep. She had noticed that he always had to be in physical contact with her as he slept. It was oddly comforting. She resolved that she would tell him that morning before they started their day. She considered all the ways she could tell him. She had always been direct, but somehow she felt that this piece of information needed more of a Booth touch. She wished she could ask him how to tell him that she was pregnant. She really had no idea how he would react. She didn't think that he would be happy about the fact that it was so unplanned. He had gone through that with Rebecca and it didn't work out well for him in the early years. She had to assure him that she would never keep him away from his child regardless of their relationship. She had to think that he would also want to be involved in the pregnancy and birthing. She didn't know how she felt about that. As much as she enjoyed her time with Booth in a non-work related setting, she was still rather independent. It would be a huge change to admit him into her life twenty-four/seven so intimately- not to mention all the changes that she would be experiencing physically. She knew all about hormonal changes but was convinced that it wouldn't affect her the way if affected other women. Still, there was no need to speculate or consider what Booth might want until he knew what was coming.

She rolled over to face him and he pulled her close as he came to wakefulness.

"Mom, I don't want to go to school," he whined.

"School? Do you have a training course today?"

He rolled over on his back and smiled. "Just a joke, Bones."

"Oh." She leaned up on her elbow. "I had a very nice weekend."

He opened one eye and looked at her. "Yeah? Me too."

"There is something I want to talk to you about," she said. It came out more seriously than she had wanted it to.

Booth heard the tone in her voice, but really didn't want anything serious to upset their morning. "Yeah, I've got something I want talk to you about too." He rolled over on top of her and nuzzled her neck. "Mine first."

Brennan chose to allow him his first say. She loved their morning sex - it was just better.

An hour later they were getting ready for work. Booth had already showered, Brennan was in there now. "Carson called me yesterday," he said raising his voice over the fall of water. "Left a message ... Rita is in town and he wants us to meet her."

"Who is Rita?"

"His daughter."

"Oh."

"You had something you wanted to talk to me about?" Booth asked with a mouthful of toothpaste.

"It can wait," she said rinsing the shampoo out of her hair. There was something entirely too intimate in sharing a bathroom in the morning. She wasn't sure she liked it.

"No, no. Come on. You can tell me."

Brennan considered. It was not the right time or place to tell him - maybe over breakfast. To stop him from asking she picked the first thing that came to mind. "Angela is concerned about how Dr. Hodgins will hold up during the birth of their baby. She wants me there as back-up in case Dr. Hodgins can't perform his coaching duties."

"You don't have to worry about Hodgins, Bones. He'll rally when the time comes."

"How can you be sure?"

"I was there ... I lived through it. It is terrifying and crazy and bloody. Rebecca was screaming at me, at the doctor. She was in so much pain. I have never felt more helpless in my life, but it never occurred to me not to be there. Hodgins will rise to the occasion. You can bet on that. He would never miss the moment his baby takes his first breath. It's a miracle."

She would have debated the miracle description if she weren't feeling the miracle of life herself - in her head mostly. "I still want to be there."

"We'll be there, Bones." He stepped to the doorway. "I'm going to start breakfast ... you want fruit and cereal or something with a little more protein?"

The thought of food made Brennan a little queasy. "Just fruit, thanks."

"OK ... don't stay in there all day. You'll shrivel up."

He left the bathroom closing the door behind him. Brennan sat down on the bench and let the hot water beat down on her. He said it was terrifying and crazy. He said he felt helpless. Maybe he doesn't want to go through that again.

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

Booth was checking his messages when Brennan entered the kitchen.

"Caroline was working all weekend," he said making a final note in his book.

"Oh?"

"Nothing big, but you know Caroline; she can make a mountain out of a mole hill."

"I don't know what that means."

He smiled at her and took a bite of his toast. "You need to eat. You look a little pale. Didn't I feed you enough this weekend?" He leaned over and stole a kiss. "Or was there too much physical activity?"

She smiled at him and brushed some crumbs away from his face. "I had a very satisfying weekend."

"Satisfying, huh?" He tucked a stray hair behind her ear. "Was going for stupendous, fantastic, awesome – rocked your world kind of weekend."

She nodded. "Yes, all of those."

"He's still got it," Booth said proudly.

"Are you concerned about your age and your ability to perform sexually?"

"I wasn't," he was aghast. " What about my age? I thought I kept up pretty well this weekend for a man of my ... advanced years."

"Very well." On the other hand, Brennan thought, he was forty and that would mean he would be nearly sixty when their child graduated high school. Maybe he didn't want to be burdened with a teenage child in his fifties, or putting a child through college in his sixties - though money should not be an issue. Brennan was more than financially secure for both of them even with the fluctuations in the market and there was always another book she could write.

"So what is your point?"

It was time she told him. It really shouldn't be delayed. "Booth, I ... I ... um - I'm -."

Booth's cell rang and it startled both of them. "Let it go to voicemail," he said hitting the ignore button.

"It might be important."

"Not that important."

"Booth."

He read the caller ID. It was the bureau. He called them back. "Booth ... where? ... We'll be right there." He ended the call. "We're up. Human remains found at a bowling alley."

"Ok."

"Scared the kids pretty good. Little brats were having a birthday party - guess this is one that the kid'll remember."

She turned to go get her bag from the bedroom.

"Bones, you wanted to tell me something?"

"It can wait."

"Sure?"

She nodded. "Sure." So kids were brats, huh? Yes, it could definitely wait.

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

At the bowling alley, Brennan leaned over the remains and Booth was taking notes.

"Did you follow all that?" the cop asked.

"Dead first, then ground up."

"These are defensive wounds, Booth. The victim was fending off an attack."

"He definitely failed to defend."

"I agree. It appears this man was murdered."

Brennan called it in to the Jeffersonian as Booth called the FBI CSU. They met out on the lanes when they were each done with the calls.

"Were you talking to Angela?" he asked though not really paying attention. He was observing the people in the alley.

"Yes."

"What is she doing at work?"

"She says that she can't stay home waiting - she was going stir crazy - though I don't think that is a real illness."

"It can be." He saw the CSU unit arrive and pointed in the direction of the lane.

"She is more convinced than ever that the baby will be born today," Brennan said again.

"Don't worry Bones. We'll be there. I won't let you miss this birth. It's a miracle."

"Hardly a miracle, Booth. Babies are born all the time and I have witnessed more than one birth."

"Not your best friend's baby, Bones. Trust me - it is really something when you know the person. Parker's birth was the most important moment in my life. Can't imagine anything ever topping that."

"If you had another child ... ?" She let the question hang out there so he could fill in the answer.

Booth was reading his notes not really listening to the conversation. "Yeah, sure ... probably … haven't really thought about it. It's a long way off." He was waved over by CSU and stepped away without noticing the expression on Brennan's face.

"Not that long," she said softly to herself. Brennan met her crew and set to work leaving the baby issue on hold one more time.

Booth looked over at her with her crew. She was in her element at a crime scene. Just beyond her were the kids from the party being held until their parents could come and take them home. He noticed a man come rushing in frantic. He ran up to two of the children in the group and swept them both up in his arms. He crushed them to his chest. He sunk down to his knees and set the kids back on their feet. He asked each of them question after question trying to make sure they were alright. He listen to them tell their story and he hugged them hard again. He was a good father. Booth was a good father. He liked being a father. What had Brennan asked him? Something about another child.

He watched as Brennan stepped away to use her phone. A little boy came up to her to ask her a question. Brennan looked back down the alley at where the body was. She looked back at the boy and answered in a typical Brennan way. How did Booth know it was a typical Brennan way? Because he saw the kid say 'oh cool' the way Parker normally responded to Brennan. The boy's mother came running up, horrified and took her boy away. People didn't think Brennan would be a good mother. She didn't have that natural maternal instinct to coo and fuss and placate a child. But Booth knew better. Brennan would make a great mother someday. A huge smile crossed his face. He would be there when someday came - maybe it would be someday soon. The thought stuck with him as he went back to work.

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

At the diner with Booth and Max the discussed the next steps in the case. Max suggested that they go undercover on the Thunderballs.

"I love undercover," Brennan said rubbing her hands together. "What'll I be?"

"You can be my ... girlfriend," Booth suggested thinking that the best way to lie would be to stick really close to the truth.

"Fine," she grinned. "But if Angela goes into labor we have to pick a fight so I can be there to catch the baby."

It was the third time she mentioned it that day; he got it. "I'll get you there ... hell or high water." He looked back at Max. "What?"

"I don't know. Something is weird here. You're almost polite to each other. What is it? You two having a fight?"

"No, I just really, really want to be there when Angela's baby is born."

"Right, so how soon can I become a Thunderball?" Booth changed the subject.

Plans were made to introduce Booth to the Thunderballs and set him up to take Max's place. Max left refusing help from either Brennan or Booth. Brennan was looking down at her tea that remained untouched.

"Bones?" Booth asked. "You OK? Worried about your dad?"

She looked over at him. "No, I'm fine. Dad's fine."

"You OK that I said you could be my girlfriend?"

"I thought I was."

He took her hand under the table. "You are."

"So who will you be?"

Booth grinned. "Think it's time for Buck and Wanda to come out of retirement."

Brennan liked that idea. "Buck and Wanda were fun."

"Agree ... but I am thinking they be more down to earth – less circus folk and more … regular folk."

"I don't know what that means."

"Follow by lead," he leaned in slightly about to kiss her cheek instead he whispered something in her ear that made her blush.

"Buck and Wanda were married," she reminded him.

"So?"

"You said I could be your girlfriend."

"How about we split the difference, eh? You can be my fiancée."

She smiled brightly. "Why, Buck ... this is all so sudden."

"You need time to think about it there, Wanda?"

"No," she shook her head slowly. "Not at all."

"Good." He didn't think them being overseen. He leaned in and kissed her lightly on the lips.

Sweets saw the entire exchange from across the street. He nodded and smiled.

**x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

Booth and Brennan had been at the lanes for a while. She was actually having fun. Booth just threw a gutterball.

"Why are you bowling so badly?" she asked a Booth came limping up the lane.

"My feet are killing me."

Brennan's phone rang noticing the caller ID she walked away from the group. "This is Wanda talk to me."

"Bren," Angela said panting. "It's time."

"It is? Now? You're in labor?" Brennan checked her watch and looked back over at Booth. She had to get out of there.

"Yes, but we have some time."

"I'm on my way." She stopped. "Where are you?"

"We're at the hospital," she said calmly. "Jack is here, sweetie."

"Will he make it?"

"Yes, he's being great."

Brennan didn't care. She wanted to be there. "I'll be right there."

"Take your time, honey."

"We are getting close to catching the murderer."

"I know Sweetie, we are talking to Wendell."

"From the hospital?"

"Yes. You have some time. Looks like the murder weapon is a bowling ball."

"Ok … Ok … are you OK?"

Angela felt another contraction coming. "I gotta go." She handed the phone to Jack and cried out. Brennan listened and waited.

After a moment or two she ended the call and called Wendell.

**x|x x|x**

Brennan was working on Amber's laptop.

Max looked over at her. "What are you doing?"

"Looking through Amber's laptop."

"Don't you need a warrant for that?"

"If Buck and I ever have a child she will not turn out like Amber," she blurted out without thinking.

"Temperance, it's just us monkey's you don't need to keep up your cover story."

"I find it helpful to remain in character." Brennan went off on what she suspected about Amber and lane twelve. "I need to tell Booth."

"Honey, what is going on with you and Booth?"

"What do you mean?"

"Are you two, OK?"

"Yes, Dad."

"It just seems like you are running hot and cold."

"We are not accustomed to the changes in our relationship so we do not know how to act in public when we are working."

"Is that going to be a problem?" Max asked.

"It can't be." Brennan got up and walked away leaving Max to wonder why it couldn't be a problem.

**x|x x|x**

Brennan shared with Booth her suspicions about the resetting of the pins on lane twelve and told him that Wendell believed that the ball could not have been more than five pounds.

"What's he saying ... that it was a kid's ball?"

"It appears so."

"What if it wasn't Fowler who rigged the lane, what if it was Amber?"

"Fowler figures it out." They look over see Amber beating up on an arcade machine.

"She kills him."

"If we ever had a child like that, Buck …"

"That is never ever gonna happen, Wanda."

Brennan wasn't so sure Booth or Buck could make such a promise but it wasn't the time or place to really discuss it. "Angela is in labor," Brennan said.

Booth snapped his attention back to her. "Do you need to go?"

"She doesn't think we need to hurry."

"But you want to go."

Brennan nodded slightly.

"OK." He took her hand. "Ten more minutes, OK? We are close on this one – I can feel it."

She squeezed his hand back. "OK." She was still watching Amber unable to keep the look of disgust off her face.

"Bones," he called to get her attention. "Don't worry."

"I'm not worried about Angela -."

"Don't worry about our kid … OK?"

"What?" She hadn't told him about their baby yet.

"I see the way you are looking at Amber. There is no way we are going to produce a kid like that." He closed the distance between them and kissed her – not in character, a real kiss. "Not a chance in hell. Our kid will be awesome." He smiled at her. "But I hope she doesn't wear blue eye shadow like her mom." Booth got up and walked away after kissing her again quickly. He caught Max looking at him out of the corner of his eye, but didn't respond.

Brennan was left wondering how he knew what to say to her to make her feel better when he didn't know what was bothering her.

**x|x x|x**

Discovering that the the motorcycle helmet was the murder weapon did the trick. With the murder solved, Booth and Brennan raced to the hospital – lights and sirens all the way. Brennan was quiet and looking out the window.

"We'll make it, Bones."

"I know."

He wanted to reach over and take her hand but needed both for the wheel. "We'll make it," he repeated.

"Do we have the rabbit?" she asked.

"Huh?"

"The present for Angela and the baby."

"Um ... yeah, yeah … it's in the back." She was being unusually quiet even for her. "Bones?"

"I'm fine, Booth." Everything was flooding Brennan at once. Angela's baby could be born blind or there could be some other terrible event that happened during the birth. Their child could grow up to be an obnoxious brat or a murderer. There was so much uncertainty. Her own uncertainty was washing over her about what her future would bring. She was on a path that she had to see it through. She knew in her head the Booth would be there with her, but for the moment it was her secret, his reaction, how everything was about to change and how out of control she felt that was weighing on her.

**x|x x|x**

Booth sat in waiting room caddy corner from Brennan. It had been a hell of a day and the waiting was wearing on him. He thought about what he felt when Parker was born. He was younger then, less prepared for what life was throwing at him. Thirty is so much younger than forty, but no thirty year old would admit that. He watched Brennan out of the corner of his eye. She was the woman he loved and would love for the rest of his life – he knew it. How long before she did? How long before they could be where Angela and Hodgins were? It had been some time since Booth seriously thought about having another child. When Brennan asked years ago it scared the hell out of him – scared him more to think that he might not be allowed to be in his kid's life. When she asked a few weeks ago it floored him because he wasn't ready. What a difference a few weeks make. Things were different now - Booth was. They were together. They could have a family. There was more he wanted from his relationship with Brennan, but it didn't need to take place immediately. He would be ready when she was. No more wasting time being angry or scared or just plain cautious.

"Bones?" he sat up and putting his elbows on his knees so he could stay low and keep his voice down.

"I just want the baby to get here," she said.

"Yeah, I know."

Just then Hodgins came out and introduced them to Michael Staccato Vincent Hodgins.

Booth looked over at Brennan and smiled. She was looking at the baby and never looked more beautiful. He watched her slip away into Angela's room. He wished she looked happier.

**x|x x|x** **x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

They stayed for a while talking with their friends. Cam, Sweets, Wendell, Booth and Brennan went for a drink to celebrate the new little Hodgins, but Booth and Brennan decided to bow out early. There were tired from the long day. As they walked home Booth allowed Brennan to steer the conversation.

"They looked so happy," she said after a block or two.

"Yeah, well they had a baby," Booth said.

"Their whole lives are changing; you'd think they would be a little more apprehensive."

"Well, you know … having a baby … that's a good thing."

"You … You really think that?"

"Yeah, it's a great thing." He turned and looked at her. "What? What? Oh come on, Bones. Look the baby is healthy … they had a healthy baby. All right? They love each other. This is the happiest day of their lives. OK? What?" He watched her for a moment realizing that he had no idea what she was about to say.

"I'm … I'm pregnant." She paused to try to read his reaction. "You're the father."

A slow smiled came to Booth's face that lit up his eyes as her words registered. She smiled back tentatively.

"You're pregnant?" he asked. "You're pregnant!" He wrapped his arms around her, lifted her up and spun her around. "You're pregnant," he laughed.

"Yes," she was still a little confused by his reaction. "You're the father," she repeated at a loss for what to say.

"You bet your ass, I'm the father." He spun her around again. "We're going to have a baby!" he cheered.

"Yes." He put her back down. "Are you happy about this?" she asked for clarification.

"Of course I am." He put his hands on either side of her face and kissed her. "I can't believe it. It's fantastic." He looked across the street at two guys who were walking home from the bar. "We're going to have a baby," he shouted.

"Hey buddy … congratulations," they echoed back.

He looked back at Brennan; she wasn't quite as enthusiastic as he was. "What? Aren't you happy?"

"I don't know … I mean yes … but … I don't know." She shrugged. "I didn't plan this."

"No, no … this was not planned … but you don't always get to plan these kinds of things."

"I won't keep you away from your baby, Booth. You know that?"

"What?" He had no idea where that came from until he realized she was talking about Rebecca and the trouble they had over Parker when Booth first met Brennan. "I know that, Bones. I know. You and me … we aren't me and Rebecca. OK?"

"Ok."

"How long have you known?" He had so many questions that was just the first one that came to mind. The answers really didn't matter - they were having a baby!

"A few days … since I got out of the hospital."

"You've known for week and you didn't tell me?" He almost laughed.

"I wasn't sure how you would react."

"Is that why you have been pumping me for baby information? Why you were so worried about us having a kid like Amber?"

She shrugged a nod.

"Bones, Bones, Bones … you can't do that to a man. You need to come right out and ask the questions. If you ask around subjects a guy will give the quickest answer to get out of the conversation – which isn't always the truth."

"Why?"

"That's just how it is."

"I don't understand."

He didn't want to explain relationship dynamics and the little white lies coupled told each other. "Bones … Bones, I love you … I have loved you forever ... a baby … our baby … how could you think that I wouldn't be happy about our baby?"

"Well, because -."

"Rhetorical, Bones. Strictly rhetorical." He put his hands on her shoulders and ducked down enough to be eye level with her. "Bones? Are you happy about this?"

It was dawning on her that her biggest fear was that Booth would not react well; in light of his apparent joy over the news, there was no reason to have that fear. "Yes. I'm a little scare ... nervous ... concerned."

"We've got nothing to be scared of," he told her. "A little baby … a little Baby Bones."

"Could be a Baby Booth."

"Are you OK? … Everything is ok, right?" he put his hand on her abdomen then moved it away quickly.

She shrugged. "I don't know … I haven't been to the doctor yet."

"Then how do you know?"

"They did a blood test at the hospital."

"I can't believe you didn't tell me for over a week." He wasn't really upset he was just talking. "Have you told anyone else?"

"I nearly told Angela just now, but I thought you should be the first to know."

"Damn right I should be the first to know." He grinned and kissed her again. "Wow ... a baby."

"You have no concerns?" she asked. "You had said that the next time you had a child you wanted to do it the right way."

"Yeah, I did ... but there is no wrong way to have a baby, Bones ... not for us." He wrapped his arm around her shoulder and directed her down the street toward his apartment. "We have a lot to talk about ... but first things first ... we are going to a doctor, then there is prenatal vitamins, and regular check ups ... we have a lot to think about."

"There is time, Booth."

"You have any idea how far along you are?"

"Four weeks," she said definitively.

"Four weeks?" he asked. "How do you know?"

"I believe that to be true."

"So you think it was the night -." He let the sentence drop. To say it was their first night together would be the same as saying it was the night Vincent was killed. If it wasn't for that - Vincent's death - they might not be discussing a baby or be in a relationship enough to think that a baby was possible. He needed to get off that subject quickly. "After this weekend - I just bought a family pack of condoms, guess I should take those back for a refund, huh?"

"A family pack? Why would they sell prophylactics in a family pack?

"Joke Bones ... a little levity."

"Oh." She stopped walking and Booth took a step or two before he noticed. "Booth?"

He turned back toward her still grinning from ear to ear. He was going to be a father - again.

"Booth, are you really OK with this?"

"Yes ... yes of course ... I mean sometime tonight it will sink in and will wake up in a cold sweat but that is just being a father."

"I don't understand."

"Worrying about what kind of parent you will be or if the kid is going to be healthy or smart or successful ... that just comes with the territory."

"The territory?"

"The parental unit territory. It is normal to worry - if you didn't that would be a bigger deal. But come on Bones ... we are going to have a fantastic kid. She'll be brilliant and beautiful just like her mother."

"How do you know the child will be female?"

"I don't ... fifty fifty chance."

"The percentage of male to female -."

"Doesn't matter, Bones." He wrapped his arm around her and pulled her close and started walking again. "Look, we will have the next eight months to stress and worry about our baby - our baby? Doesn't that sound great?" He squeezed her lightly. "Let's just enjoy tonight, OK? One step at a time and we will take everything as it comes."

"Ok." 

"OK?"

"Yes."

He stopped and turned her to face him. "You know I love you, right?"

"Yes, Booth. You have often told me that you do."

"And this baby may be earlier than we talked about ... but this is where we were headed - you know that too, right?"

"I also believe that to be true."

"We can do this, Bones. You and me ... together ... there is nothing we can't do." He shook his head grinning. "We made a baby. There is nothing we can't do," he repeated.

She nodded slowly. "I am beginning to see that as a very real possibility."

"Good." He started them walked again. He really wanted to get her home.

"Booth?"

"Bones."

"I love you too."

"I know." He started walking slightly faster. "Wow ... we are going to have a baby. A little baby."

"They don't stay little for very long," she reminded him.

"I'm aware of that," he almost laughed.

"Booth?" she called to him again. "I'm pregnant," she said with much more glee than she had shown before.

"Yes, you are."

He slipped his hand into her and led her up the stairs to his apartment. They disappeared into the building for the first night of the rest of their lives. Times change and they keep on changing. They chose to take the stairs.

**x|x x|x** **x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x x|x**

**A/N:** There you go. I set out to take us on a little adventure showing the missing scenes between HOLE IN THE HEART and THE CHANGE IN THE GAME that the powers that be chose not to share with us. I have accomplished my goal. I never expected this story to go twenty-nine chapters or run over 120k words or take all summer and into the fall. Thanks for sticking with it for so long and I hope there were some shipper smiles along the way. BONES will be back in a couple weeks and it looks to be a very sweet - albeit shortened season. Honestly until I saw the first promo I was unconvinced that I would hang with BONES for the last season, but I get the feeling that there might be many moments worth watching. I am a hopeless shipper and it looks like our reward is in sight. I need to thank the writers, cast and crew of BONES for being so inspirational. I want to thank you - my loyal readers - all for your kind comments, your alerts and your favoriting this story. It is truly gratifying to know that you are out there reading and enjoying. I again apologize for the lack of Beta. I am sure it was distracting. Thank you for staying with this to the end - though I would like to see what the reactions to the news of B&B together and pregnant would be, and we will never see the first six months of the couplehood. I am sure someone else has written that bit. Now that I am done with this maybe I can read someone else's offering. Thank you all.

Here's to you and to season seven of BONES. On with the show.


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